Gradual Changes : Newer Bits of Life
by OkashiraShinomori
Summary: Sequel to Tears of an Angel, written by BOTH OkashiraShinomori and Chou Nuriko ChibiSecchan. On a stroke of unexpected fortune, Konoe Eishun has granted his daughter permission to attend a school for the magical arts. Setsuna, of course, is going along at
1. Transfer Students

_**Disclaimer: If you hear something that resembles "ChibiSecchan and/or OkashiraShinomori own Negima," please sic your lawyers on a Saotome Haruna. We've never owned 'em, and probably, never will.**_

_Okashira: Okay, this fic, although not a one-shot, is a continuation of the three KonoSetsu one-shots I previously wrote. It is the first chapter in what I hope to be a very long running series._

_ChibiSecchan: Yeah, hopefully it can be completed by the time I graduate from college...People here probably know me as "Chou Nuriko", but now I'm his Partner-In-Crime ((smacks Okashira's thick head))._

_Okashira: ((Rubs the back of his head sheepishly.)) Hopefully it will be done by the time you finish college, but pretty soon BOTH of us will be tied up with it, so y'never know..._

_ChibiSecchan: ((nods)) So readers, please bear with us. After all, there's no such thing as too much KonoSetsu! _

_Okashira: ((Nods in a sage fashion.)) Amen to that._

_**Chapter 01**_

_**Transfer Students**_

_**By OkashiraShinomori and ChibiSecchan**_

**_Beta Reading By Shinmeiryuu and Spiritmage_**

"**Why does my food always seem to go missing when Haruna-san is around?" – Sakurazaki Setsuna**

"I'm WHAT?" Konoe Konoka's usually soft voice echoed throughout the headmaster's chamber, bouncing angrily from the aged walls. She stood before the massive desk contained in the room, a look of deep hurt and shock etched onto her pretty face. Being the first day of break, she was wearing a pair of blue-jeans and a yellow t-shirt rather than the usual Mahora uniform, which, combined with the expression she wore, made her seem to be an entirely different person.

With a curious lift of his eyebrows, Mahora Academy's headmaster responded, "You're going to be attending a school for magic, rather than normal subjects."

Konoka continued to stare. "W-what about Secchan? And Asuna? And everyone else?" She launched another question before allowing her grandfather to attempt an answer. "And what about dad? He said I'm still supposed to distance myself from magic."

At this, Konoemon raised his withered hand in a motion of halting. "Actually, it was your father's suggestion." With something of a grin at so easily disrupting his granddaughter's rare tirade, he handed an open envelope across his massive desk. Konoka plucked it from his hand slowly, almost as if she thought it would attack her.

She pulled two sheets of paper from within the unusually thick envelope and flipped the pages open, scanning them quickly, instantly recognizing her father's seal at the bottom. Sure enough, the hand-written letter stated his wish that she attend a school for magic, a rather highly renowned school at that, judging by his mention of expenses. She looked over the top of the letter towards the white-bearded old man.

"Well, this still doesn't help much. I don't want to leave Secchan and all of my friends. These are the best friends I've ever had!" Tears welled anew when her girlfriend's name was once again mentioned; she could adapt to leaving the others, but not her Secchan.

Again the well-aged man chuckled loudly, ruining the atmosphere the chocolate-haired girl had instilled. "Setsuna-kun, at least, has already been given due consideration, and she won't hinder your decision." He watched with a growing smile as Konoka's soft features screwed up in confusion.

"W-what do you mean, she won't hinder my decision?" It could only be one of two things; one good, and one crushing...

The elder Konoe motioned at a stack of official looking documents on his desktop dismissively. "I've been going through the academy's budget, pruning things and such, and there's more than enough excess funds lying around that the academy can pay Setsuna-kun's tuition. If you go, she can as well."

Although she smiled, the news was still enough of a shock that Konoka found she had to sit down. _Well, if Secchan would go with me, I guess I could go..._ She cleared her throat, trying to sound authoritative. "If that's the case, then I suppose I could go to this school, as long as Secchan wants to as well."

Nodding, Konoemon spoke, "I figured as much. And I was actually hoping you'd say that. It shows your devotion." He cleared his throat as Konoka blushed. "I assume Setsuna-kun is waiting outside, yes?"

Konoka nodded, her face taking its normal color. "Yeah, she said she'd wait for my meeting with you to end. We're gonna go to the park afterwards." Her eyes lit up at the mention of their outing, and her posture marked an improvement in her mood.

Her grandfather smiled, happy that she was happy, and cleared his throat. "Setsuna-kun," he called towards the door, "would you please come in?"

The heavy door swung open several short moments later, admitting the raven-haired young woman, her ever-present sword at her back. Her eyes held a questioning look as she gazed first at her Kono-chan, then at her contractor and educator. "Yes, sir?"

"Come on in." He beckoned her forward, and without hesitation she walked across the room to stand beside Konoka's chair. Konoka grinned happily at her, and Setsuna smiled a small smile at the seated girl, then looked back up at the man behind the desk.

"If Konoka were to leave Mahora Academy for another school, would you be willing to go with her?"

"Of course." Setsuna blushed slightly at having answered nigh instantaneously, but maintained eye contact with the headmaster. "Of course I would."

Konoka sighed in relief, and her bearded grandfather smiled. "It's settled then."

Setsuna frowned. "What's settled?" She again looked from Konoka to Konoemon, more than a little confused. _I think I've missed something... _"Kono-chan?"

Konoka grabbed Setsuna's hands in her own, smiling broadly. "Father said I can go to a school for magic!" She squeezed Setsuna's hands happily, and Setsuna found that her jaw dropped slightly at the statement.

"Your father gave you permission to go?"

Konoka nodded. "He suggested it!" Stunned silence fell, which changed to pained silence moments later.

Setsuna's shoulders slumped, and her eyes darkened slightly. "Does that mean you're leaving Mahora Academy, Kono-chan?"

Konoka blinked, instantly hearing the unspoken question in the other girl's voice. "Gramps said there's enough money that you can go too, if you want, Secchan."

A wide smile crossed Setsuna's face, and it was only with a light blush that she gently squeezed Konoka's soft hands reassuringly. "You bet I'll go, Kono-chan."

Konoemon coughed discretely, easily dissolving the mood that was being created. Turning scarlet, Setsuna released Konoka's hands and smoothed her skirt apprehensively. Also blushing, Konoka tugged lightly on Secchan's shirt and motioned at the chair beside her.

The headmaster waited for the contemporary knight to seat herself before continuing with the initial subject of conversation. "I'm sorry, but I need a definite answer now. The tuition is due shortly, you see..."

The two young women looked at each other and nodded simultaneously, Setsuna somehow communicating with Konoka, who turned back to her grandfather and nodded. "We're going."

"Good then. I was correct in making sure you were accepted ahead of time." Rather surprising the both of them, he pulled a moderately large stack of paper from a desk drawer and slid it across the desk to Konoka. Seconds later, a similar stack sat before Setsuna. "All that's left now is for you to apply."

Konoka couldn't help but groan slightly. She had never been one to enjoy paperwork of any sort, and it was already wearing at her excitement with the prospect of a magic school. She took the pen her grandfather offered, casting a mock-angry gaze at it, then focused on the first sheet, finding it to be the customary "We're pleased you've chosen to come to our school, blah, blah, blah" greeting used by schools of every sort.

After an hour and a half of reading, page flipping, and writing, the young girls found that they were anxious to get to the school, and that they had both developed minor headaches. According to the reams of paper, there was no set length of time one attended the school, for one left when satisfied with their education. It seemed likely that one would attend for several years, as one could only take 3 classes per semester due to the 3 hour class periods.

Konoemon had shown them the long, single sheet of paper that listed the classes, but put it out of Konoka's excited reach before they could get a hold on it.

"I'm afraid it'll take quite a bit of time to make these decisions girls. There're many classes to choose from." Konoka made a pouty face in hopes of persuading the older man, but with a cocked eyebrow, he slid the paper under his elbow firmly. With a wry grin, Konoemon flipped through the large stack of papers and pulled a single yellow sheet from each stack. "I'll send these out then, and within a week we'll see whether your application is accepted. Then there'll be much to do..."

Konoka stared longingly at the paper. She had glimpsed classes about fortune telling, and was desperate for details. "Are you sure I can't just look for a little bit..."

Her grandfather shook his head. "I'll let you have the list after we're done here. There are still some things I need to tell you before you delve too far into that." He cleared his throat, refocusing their attention on him. "If you are accepted, which I've no doubt you will be, you'll need to be ready to leave in a week in a half. You're supposed to have around two and a half weeks to familiarize yourself with the campus, then school will start. While you're still here, you'll need to get your uniforms, and have yourself packed as well as have your goodbyes said." He smiled kindly. "It might be hard, but if you wish to follow your blood, Konoka, it's best."

He clapped his hands together. "I believe we are quite done. Now," he handed the long sheet of paper to his granddaughter, "you may look at these."

Konoka snatched the paper eagerly, sharing it with Secchan immediately. The two girls scanned the words, looking for thing that they each found particularly interesting. With a small smile, Konoemon realized the girls had no intention of moving. A glance at the clock told him that simply wouldn't do. "Excuse me, but I've a meeting to hold here soon, and I'm afraid you'll need to clear out." It may have sounded rude, but both of the young women knew him well enough to know it was not meant as such.

Landing a kiss on his cheek, Konoka leapt from her chair. "'Kay. Thanks a lot, gramps." She moved to grab her papers from the table, but found that Setsuna was holding both stacks, her sword already over her shoulder. "I can get those, Secchan..."

Setsuna smiled slightly and turned towards the door, pretending not to hear. "Shall we, Kono-chan?"

A grin crossed Konoka's face, and she dashed forwards, ignoring the general solemnity of the room as she did so. She raced up to Setsuna's side, unable to grab her arm or anything due to the load of papers. Instead, she sidled up close to her, causing a dark blush to immediately grace Setsuna's neck and face. "Let's go choose classes, Secchan!"

After three hours within Setsuna's dorm room, the list of classes and their descriptions spread before the couple, conversation was becoming slightly heated. The list of classes was rather expansive, although one wouldn't know it by comparing the two girls' preferred class lists. Despite the fact that in the field of academic interests, the two were nothing alike, Setsuna's list of desired classes was identical to her girlfriend's.

Konoka reclined in exaggerated tiredness against Setsuna and yawned slightly, her gaze falling to the paper in Secchan's hand. "So, Secchan, what classes did you decide on?" She put her right hand on Setsuna's right shoulder and rested her chin on the left, gazing down at the paper. There were ten or so class names that had been hastily scribbled, then marked out, but at the bottom were three clearly written, unblemished names. Konoka frowned as she read them.

"Those are the same as mine, Secchan!" She pointed at her own paper lying on her lap as if to stress the point. "Why?"

Setsuna cleared her throat. It seemed, to her, that it was a matter of security, and she didn't much appreciate having her decisions questioned. "It's still my job to protect you, you know. And now that you're worth protecting even more, I want to make sure I'm there if you need me, that's all. We don't know anything about the people at this school, after all..."

With a frown, Konoka continued, "But you aren't going to like these classes! You should take the Kendo class or something!"

"As long as I'm with you, I'll enjoy whatever I'm doing." Although sweet, it didn't help Konoka's mood.

The chocolate-haired girl turned what could be called her patented pout on the older girl. "Secchan, I know you won't enjoy it. You should have fun at the school too. Now pick some classes YOU want to take."

"I'm perfectly happy with the classes I've chosen, Kono-chan." Her voice had unintentionally taken on a slightly chilled edge, her general dislike of Konoka trying to brush off her security measures showing through quite clearly.

Konoka frowned, seeing Setsuna fall into a bad mood slowly. _She can be so stubborn..._ But Konoka was certain she had ways of getting her wishes. Forcing her cutest smile onto her face, Konoka slid around and fell backwards into Setsuna's lap, looking up at her with pleading brown eyes. "Secchan, you don't REALLY want to take Light magic, do you?"

A blush quickly traversed Setsuna's features at finding Konoka lying across her lap, and she was tempted to look away, but the cute girl's eyes held her.

"I..." _Dammit...why can't I lie to her!_ Setsuna paused before answering and decided to give the idea a little more objective thought, this time from the view of Konoka's girlfriend, rather than merely her guard. _Kono-chan needs to be protected, but I suppose she also wants me to be happy...I know what that feeling's like, anyway. And to make HER happy, I have to be happy..._ With a defeated sigh, Setsuna conceded slightly.

"No, I don't particularly wish to take Light Magic."

Konoka's mood seemed to brighten somewhat. "And Latin?"

Mocking a glare down at the irresistible young woman, Setsuna shook her head. "Boring, if you want my truthful opinion." She smirked slightly as Konoka screwed her face up in indignation.

Konoka reached down beside her and picked up the list of classes again, and compared it to Setsuna's list. Had she been pressed to choose Setsuna's classes for her, she wouldn't have had any more to add to the list. The ones on there were definitely the ones Setsuna would have picked, and would certainly enjoy more than the magic that she had picked out for herself.

With an air of importance, Konoka circled two of the classes that Setsuna had already marked out, and drew an arrow from the circle to the bottom of the paper, marking out both of the magic classes, leaving only Magic Allocation from the original three. She smiled up at Setsuna and turned her paper over. "Here ya go. Your new class list."

"Kendo and Illusion, huh?" Setsuna leaned back against the unused lower bunk, a look of deep consideration etched across her face. "I dunno...I don't know how much I'd enjoy those..."

A grin crossed her face as Konoka pretended to get huffy about it, going on about how maybe Setsuna would prefer to learn Arithmancy or perhaps Potions. Setsuna actually laughed when Konoka suggested Advanced Alchemy, although she also slid her arms around her waist affectionately. "I think I'll stick with Kendo and Illusion, thank you." She smiled down at Konoka, who cheered considerably. "But I'm still taking Magic Allocation with you, got it?"

Konoka nodded quickly, a wide smile on her face. Smiling wryly, Secchan motioned towards the kitchenette imperiously. "How about you alchemize us some supper, Kono-chan?"

Pouting again, Konoka hugged Setsuna's waist. "Don't wanna go." As if on cue, Setsuna's stomach rumbled, and Konoka looked up in surprise to see Setsuna smiling sheepishly.

"Well if you're that hungry, sure," she giggled. She sat up slowly, stretching her arms over her head. "What would you like?"

A blush rose to Setsuna's cheeks as the possible answers to that question arose, few being food. It was with some effort that Setsuna narrowed her answers down, trying to remember what kinds of food she had stored in the room's cabinets. _Only one good way to answer this question, then..._ With a small cough, Setsuna cleared her throat of an odd unwillingness to answer. "Uh...surprise me, Kono-chan." She grinned at the girl, and quite satisfactorily had the smile returned.

"Okay, Secchan!" With a bounce, Konoka was on her feet, laying her papers back on the floor. She began humming as she stepped into the cooking area, engrossing herself in meal-time preparation entirely.

The evening passed quickly for the two. Still discussing classes, they lingered over the simple meal that Konoka had prepared, seeing as how Setsuna did indeed keep little food in the immediate vicinity. Konoka had vowed that under her iron fist, Setsuna would begin eating a more balanced diet, to which Setsuna had blushed fiercely before changing the subject back to the school of magic they hoped to attend.

They spoke of the subject 'till the late hours of the night, only ceasing when Konoka nearly fell asleep in her plate of potato chips. It was with the gentleness only shown to the young healer that Setsuna escorted her back to her dorm room, parting at the hinged blockade with a quick good night kiss, grateful that no-one lurked in the hall.

As is common when one is awaiting something of great import, the week passed slowly for the couple, more so, even, than when school was still in session. Despite going on something of a date nearly each day, time still seemed to merely crawl towards the day Konoe Konoemon had said they'd get a reply. They'd already had a second meeting with him, clearing their course selections with him, making certain they would be allowed to take them. As far as he could see, there would be no problem, and was quite in agreement with their selections.

When the day their hopeful acceptance was to arrive, the two were waiting at the headmaster's office door that morning when he walked in, and all but camped out on the couch and chairs arranged at the far end of the otherwise typical administration office. Not having slept well the last couple days due to anxiousness, Konoka quickly fell asleep on Setsuna's shoulder, and the swordswoman couldn't help but blush each time the headmaster shot a glance at them, followed by one of his impossibly knowing grins.

After what seemed to be hours, a lesser member of the school's staff, a young woman Setsuna recognized as a secretary in the English department, arrived bearing the day's mail. Being of strong mind and body as she was, the normally not-so-excitable student managed to hold back the feeling that she should tackle the secretary and steal the mail. Rather, she would wait until the frail old man had it...

Despite her outward shows of impatience, Setsuna was not as anxious to attend the new school as was Konoka. She had no particularly strong attachment to Mahora, but was also not overly fond of the idea of being isolated from any sort of reinforcements if something were to happen on the island. She supposed it was silly of her to worry; it was, after all, a stronghold of magic, but she couldn't bring herself to put the thought from her mind entirely. As long as Konoka was going, though, Setsuna had her heart in the plan completely.

Deciding it was better for Konoka's health to simply tell her the news, rather than let her fret over it while she opened the letter, Setsuna called across the room at the smaller girl's grandfather, "Sir, would you please open our letters? I'd rather not wake Kono-chan just yet." She looked down at the girl. "As you can see, she's not gotten a lot of sleep lately."

Konoemon nodded, but made sure to set the rather thick envelopes apparently from the school off to the side, having to deal with Mahora business first and foremost. Rather than kill herself with anxiousness awaiting the letters to be opened, Setsuna closed her eyes and rested her chin atop Konoka's head, trying to relax herself. To what would later be her amazement, she drifted to sleep nearly instantly.

Several minutes after the both of them were asleep, Konoemon finished reading through the usual lists of bills incurred by the school, and turned his attention to the thick envelopes of a rather heavier type of paper. He picked one up, finding it addressed to "Konoe Konoka, c/o Konoe Konoemon, Headmaster, Mahora Academy." The sender seemed to be lacking an address, and the name "Asian Academy of the Arcane" was all that was emblazoned across the top of the top of the envelope.

He slowly opened the envelope, not nearly as worried about the results as the two young women were. Konoka was descended from a line of powerful mages, and Setsuna was sent under the advice of the leader of the Kanto Magic Association. He pulled the sheaf of papers from within the envelope, having decided by the presence of so many papers that they had indeed been admitted, and searched for the official confirmation.

The first paper on the stack declared quite proudly that "It would be our honor to instruct the esteemed daughter of the Konoe household in the art of magic." He scoffed at their politeness, knowing full well it was merely for show, having written such letters many a time himself. After the multitude of niceties, the letter boiled down to simply stating that Konoka was accepted, and the date that school would begin. He cast a quick eye across the rest of the literal stack of papers, and found it to be mostly necessary information about the campus, the dorms, supplies lists, teacher introductions, and the general happy-crappy that schools liked to boast about when they could.

He sat the papers aside and opened Setsuna's envelope as well, quite satisfied to find that they were also "honored to instruct the esteemed pupil of the Shinmeiryuu." Both letters were signed in flowing red ink by Saehara Noriko, the headmistress of the school. Despite the rather impressive title, she was no more than twenty five years old, a fact that had caused her torment for years, since she was appointed headmistress at twenty-two. Many thought it to have something to do with connections within the school system, while others thought it to be due to her good looks and charm. Konoemon, however, knew her to be fully qualified for the position, and was quite happy to leave his granddaughter under the woman's protection. _I'll have to be certain to remind Setsuna-kun that she'll need to report to Noriko-kun as she reports to me..._ He thought as he read through an extra sheet included in Setsuna's letter, asking if she would continue her security practices at the magic school.

It was then that Konoemon fully appreciated his commissioning of the other Shinmeiryuu girl into the Academy's security team. The raven-haired girl had been the school's strongest non-magical defense for the past several years, and losing her would have been quite a blow to the school. With a wry grin, he wondered what it was about being one of his hired guards that prompted romance. He had seen a most curious change in the interaction between his blond sentry and her dark-skinned superior as of late.

Deciding that he'd have time to ponder such things later, he sat the letter aside and picked up the stack of supply requests from the staff meeting that had been held the day before. He began to flip through the papers, reading in a rather detached sort of interest, dreading the figure that these requests would add up to.

It wasn't until the headmaster had completed the final version of the supply requisition form, two hours later, when Setsuna managed to rouse herself from her nap, somewhat regretfully. She blinked the sleep from her eyes and stretched as much as she could without disturbing Konoka, despite knowing she'd have to wake her up soon anyway. Her sharp eyes caught that the envelopes on the desk had indeed been opened, as small stacks of folded papers of various colors sat atop them. With an inward sigh at having to do so, Setsuna gently shook Konoka's shoulders. "C'mon, Kono-chan. Wake up. Our letters are here." Her voice was hushed, hoping to not allow her contractor to hear the softness of her voice. It wouldn't do to show her softer side in front of a superior, but with Kono-chan, she couldn't force herself to avoid it.

Konoka's eyes fluttered open, and she looked up at Setsuna, smiling before sitting up straight, clasping her hands and stretching her arms in front of her, her shoulders popping as she did so. "Hey, Secchan." As if forgetting the rather solemn room in which they sat, Konoka leaned playfully against the slightly taller girl with an exaggerated yawn. "That was a nice nap, wasn't it?"

With a blush, Setsuna looked up at the headmaster, grateful to see him paying the couple no attention. "Yes, it was nice. We slept for two hours, by the looks of it." Her gaze strayed to the clock as if to offer proof.

Blinking, the room and their reason for being there seemed to rush back to Konoka. "The school! Is the mail here yet? Why didn't you wake me up? Did we make it in?"

Setsuna held a finger to Konoka's lips, halting the worriedly excited flow of questions. "Shh... I don't know yet. I asked your grandfather to read them, then tell us after we woke up."

Grabbing Setsuna's hands in her own, Konoka bounced off the couch, pulling her love along with her. "Gramps! What did the letters say?" She bounded up to the edge of the desk, looking anxiously between the older man and the letters, wondering whether it might be faster to read them herself.

Konoemon signed the paper he had been concentrating on without even acknowledging the two girls' presence. He was headmaster, after all, and as such, needed to put work before his personal affairs of his granddaughter and her girlfriend. He slipped the paper into its proper folder and pushed it off to the side. Folding his hands before him, Konoemon looked up into his granddaughter's wide mocha eyes.

"The letters have indeed come, Konoka. Setsuna-kun saw them delivered. Also, as you can see, I've already read then." He seemed to pause, a mistake on his part.

"Well?" Konoka leaned further across the desk, unconsciously dragging Secchan with her.

Somewhat exasperated with the excitable girl, but understanding how she felt, he waved dismissively at the papers. "Both of your applications have been accepted, as I'd expected." It was with admirable restraint that neither Setsuna nor Konoemon jumped when Konoka let out a joyous squeal.

Out of sheer happiness, she hugged Setsuna tightly, not noticing the girl stiffen and blush in response. Konoka released her and grabbed her papers from the desk, plopping heavily down in the over-stuffed chair behind her. With an apologetic nod, Setsuna also picked up her own papers and settled into the seat beside Konoka.

Humming happily, Konoka began flipping through the various pages, glancing at the headings in interest. Perhaps it was because magic had been denied her so long that she had taken such an unusually strong interest in the school of magic. She looked forward most to applying her interest in the occult to real life. What had once been a favored hobby of hers was now a school subject. The mere idea set a shiver of pure pleasure down her spine, rivaled only Secchan's presence.

As her eyes passed over another copy of the class list, she remembered that it was now necessary for them to send in their class selections. She looked over at Setsuna, a slightly worried expression on her face. "Secchan, do you have our classes?"

Setsuna blinked at the abrupt question, and an instant later her mocha eyes lit up in understanding. With a nod, she reached into the pocket of her grey skirt, one Konoka had chosen for her, and produced two neatly folded sheets of paper. "Here they are, Kono-chan." She handed them over to Konoka who quickly unfolded them to re-read the selection, then passed them across the desk to her grandfather.

"Here ya go, Gramps." She smiled at him, and with a small smile in return, his mood improving, he tucked the papers inside a folder that was nearly empty. Satisfied, Konoka returned to her excited browsing, flipping through the four-page-long list of classes. The next couple of pages were supply lists, sorted by class type. With a raised eyebrow of curiosity, Konoka sat them on her lap for further study later. The next page was one she actually stopped to read, for it was the dress code.

Konoka was quite used to being made to dress up, due to her status, and she was also used to wearing a uniform to school. Perhaps it was because of these restrictions placed upon her, that clothes were one thing she took a special interest in when she could. Not necessarily fashionable clothes, just whatever caught her eye as being cute, colorful, or comfortable. Thus she was particularly interested in the new school's rules concerning attire. Her enthusiasm dropped half a notch when she saw they did indeed have a uniform. Although unlikely, she had hoped they wouldn't.

The paper didn't elaborate much, merely stating that uniforms could be picked up at any retailer of clothes operated by a mage, and that they were to be worn to any school-related functions. Also included was a list of things you could not wear in addition to the uniform. No more than 2 body piercings, one if not in the ears, no makeup, no hair dying or flamboyant hats/hairstyles, and no more than three pieces of jewelry other than earrings. Konoka sighed. _About like I thought. Not quite as strict as here, but not much more liberal either._ With another small sigh, she sat that paper aside as well.

The next several sheets in the stack were maps of the various school buildings and dorms, complete with the history of each of the buildings. Following that was a rather lengthy set of general school and dorm rules, along with the corresponding disciplinary measures. Due to the nature of the school, said punishments were rather more creative than Konoka was used to, and she couldn't help but stare quizzically at several of them. The last page was a copy of the school calendar, which Konoka found with great pleasure to have several more days of vacation than Mahora.

Grinning in general satisfaction, Konoka restacked the papers, tapping them against her legs to straighten them, then sat back in her chair to look at Setsuna. The girl in question sat, her chin resting on one palm, reading interestedly through the list of rules and punishments. She jumped slightly when Konoka's soft hand touched her forearm, a faint blush rising instantly at the pleasant contact. She sat the paper down and cleared her throat, "Yes, Kono-chan?"

The headmaster's granddaughter gestured at the papers with one of her excited smiles on her face. "Doesn't it sound great, Secchan?"

Her enthusiasm was infectious, and Setsuna smiled back with a nod. "I am rather looking forward to it." Her eyebrows furrowed slightly and she looked at Konoemon. "Where are we to find our supplies? It didn't say."

"There are several shops in this area, actually. The largest of which is one that Konoka," he gestured at her with his chin, "frequents for her occult things." She sat up, surprised written all over her face. "You just have to know what to ask for." Konoemon opened one of his several desk drawers, shuffling through the papers within. "I've a list, somewhere; of all the registered mages in the city...it also has a list of shops that carry magical goods and such." He closed the drawer with a sigh. "When I find it, I'll get Shizuna-kun to make a copy for each of you."

Konoka's jaw dropped slightly, both at her grandfather's statements and at Secchan's easy acceptance of them. "There are mages here? With stores?"

A blush crept to her cheeks and she shrunk into her chair when both Konoemon and Secchan cast her looks that seemed to say "You didn't know?" Rather than be so blunt, Konoemon nodded. "There are many mages across the world, Konoka. I'd venture to say between fifteen and twenty-five percent of the population. Not counting those who practice crude magic, of course." Setsuna nodded in agreement. Konoka was curious about crude magic, but decided it best to ask Setsuna later.

Much to Konoka's extreme delight, Setsuna seemed to notice her sudden feeling of embarrassment and quickly changed the subject. "Also, how are we to get to," she glanced down at her papers, "Syran Island?"

Nodding his head as if he'd expected the question, Konoemon replied almost immediately. "We'll contact a boat to take you there, probably launching from Okinawa. There will, of course, be a mage aboard or you'll never find the island. If it was visible to any, it'd hardly be something that'd be kept around, you know."

Konoka nodded. _Sounds logical enough..._ "So...is there a way we'll know, after we graduate, who's a mage and who's not?" She glanced at Secchan. "Obviously I can't tell right now."

Her grandfather shook his head. "Not unless you're reading a person's surface-layer thoughts, or they're showing some kind of sign of it. For instance, Negi-kun's staff. You may not have before, but by the time you graduate, you'll recognize many similar things as being wands."

Konoka blinked as the thought struck her. How many people with canes, swords, or staves were mages? It was a staggering revelation. Her grandfather chuckled as he saw the effects of his statement on the girl.

"Clearly you've got a lot to think about." Konoka nodded slowly in response. "You two are dismissed for now. If you come back tomorrow morning, around ten, I think, I'll give you the money for your supplies and let the two of you take care of that yourselves. I'm afraid I don't have the time to go with you."

"Yes, sir." Setsuna stood, nearly at attention, and nodded in assent. Gathering her papers in one hand, she offered the other to Konoka, who took it with a small smile. An exaggerated grunt marked Setsuna pulling her love her feet; a grunt that was returned with haste with a mock-hurt look, to which Setsuna's tongue made reply. Still clasping Konoka's hand, Setsuna turned back to Konoemon. "Thank you, sir."

"Thanks, Gramps!" Konoka waved brightly, mostly over the brief bout of moodiness that had overtaken her as the tide does the beach. "See ya later." He nodded at the both of them and immediately returned to the stack of papers that demanded his attention.

Setsuna pulled the right-most of the doors open and, her hand on the small of Konoka's back, gently pushed the chocolate haired girl through, following the moment she was out. Unsurprisingly, Konoka immediately recaptured the other girl's hand. "Isn't this exciting, Secchan?" She skipped ahead a couple steps, a happy bounce in her gait.

Her thoughts briefly straying to how much money she had on her, Setsuna soon replied, "Yes, it is. I think it calls for a celebration as a matter of fact." Her own smile grew as Konoka clapped her hands happily and quickly placed a soft kiss on Setsuna's cheek.

"Yay!" Konoka noticed her Secchan's eyes dart around nervously, seeing if anyone had seen the kiss, but decided to ignore it. She had resigned herself to accepting Setsuna's caution. She knew it wasn't because Setsuna was ashamed of her or anything, it was just the way she was. It was just another thing Konoka loved about her. _Besides,_ she giggled to herself, prompting a questioning look from Setsuna, _the blush is so cute!_

Deciding to ignore the rather ominous giggle from the girl attached to her hand, Setsuna continued, "How does Italian sound, Kono-chan?" The delighted squeal was answer enough, and the couple set out at a fast walk for the exit, having had nothing to eat since the night before.

"I'll have the classic ravioli and a side order of bread-sticks."

"Ooh! Me too! Good idea, Secchan!" Smiling, Konoka handed the leather-bound menu back to their server, who took it with a nod and hurried off through the dimly lit restaurant. The smell of garlic and spices hung heavily in the air, and Konoka inhaled deeply, loving it.

Setsuna reclined, flexing her shoulders to work out the kinks as she sipped at her water. With one of her rare wry grins, she spoke, "Happy now, Kono-chan?"

"Happier than ever!" Her response was immediate and accompanied by a ferverent nod, as well as Secchan's hand motions for her to lower her voice. "I'm going to learn magic AND I get to stay with you!" An almost unnoticeably blush covered Setsuna, and the corners of her mouth turned up in a small grin.

With a nod, as a good knight bowing to her lady's wishes, Setsuna conceded. "Then I'm quite happy as well."

The exceedingly content smile that soon appeared on Konoka's face quickly dropped as "Konoka!" rang loudly through the restaurant, causing several people to stop eating and look around for the source of the outburst.

Setsuna sighed heavily as the sound of three pairs of feet moving somewhat faster than a walk caught her attention. Considering the voice and the number of people, it could only be the rest of the library troop...

As she'd thought, Miyazaki Nodoka, Ayase Yue, and the speaker, Saotome Haruna, were soon standing beside her chair and at the end of their table. Haruna quite brazenly rested a hand on Setsuna's shoulder and winked.

"On a date, eh?" She cast an eye around the restaurant, perhaps to avoid Secchan's sudden blush and death glare, then looked over at Konoka. "Well, it's certainly a nice place. The food's great."

"Yeah, it is." Konoka was barely able to contain the giggles that threatened to burst from her at the sight of Setsuna trying to glare at the oblivious artist who continued to babble on about the restaurant's merits.

"I haven't gotten the chance to tell you congratulations, Sakurazaki-san." Nodoka, hands clasped before her, smiled genuinely at the swordswoman, whose reddened gaze flicked to her momentarily. "I'm really happy for you two."

"Eh? Uh...thank you, Miyazaki-san..." Setsuna stammered slightly through the words, nearly reaching shock-level as Haruna plucked a bread-stick from the plate that the returning waiter placed before Konoka, dipping it into the sauce on the plate sitting in front of Setsuna.

She suddenly sat bolt upright as Konoka's foot poked insistently at her leg. Her brown eyes instantly locked with Konoka's, and with a gentle smile, Konoka shook her head as if to say "It's okay." Grumbling to herself, Setsuna watched Haruna munch happily on the breadstick, talking animatedly with the shortest of the three.

Setsuna cleared her throat conspicuously and focused her gaze on Haruna and Yue. "As a matter of fact, we are indeed on a date." She felt her cheeks heat up slightly and noted a delighted smile on Konoka's face. "What are you three doing, may I ask?"

Yue, noticing the rather irked look in the eyes of the quiet girl, spoke out before her taller friend could. Although quiet, her voice commanded attention. "We were looking for someplace to eat, and decided to check out this place." Seeing Setsuna's eyebrows raise in what could have been skepticism, she took a sip of her drink and continued. "But I don't think any of us are particularly in the mood for Italian, are we?"

Haruna looked down at the very end of the breadstick in her fingers and started to open her mouth, but closed it sharply as an elbow found its way to her side. "No, I don't think we do..." She rasped, casting a quick glare at her much shorter companion.

"I guess we'll leave you two to your date, then." Konoka grinned at Yue appreciatively, and Setsuna sighed in happy relief. "Have a nice time."

Yue took "Paru" by the elbow, leading her back towards the entrance. After a short wave and a "Bye!" from Nodoka, the third member of the group was soon trailing along after them.

Setsuna cast what was quite obviously a weary glance at the backs of the retreating three, the artist in particular. With a wry glance back at Konoka, she turned back around in her seat properly. "Why does my food always seem to go missing when Haruna-san is around?"

Konoka's perplexed look managed to coax a short giggle from Setsuna; a giggle she quickly masked with a rough cough. "Er, shall we eat?" For reasons Setsuna could not discern, this prompted a very short giggle from the girl across from her. _Well, at least we're having a good time..._

For several moments, they ate in general silence, the sound of forks clinking against plates and glasses hitting the table being the only real noise around them. As Setsuna was in the middle of swallowing a particularly large ravioli, Konoka looked across the table at her, clasping her hands in front of her. "Secchan, what's crude magic?"

Holding up a hand to signal her to wait, Setsuna choked down the bit of Italian food and sat her fork down. "You remember what you did at Cinema Village? When you healed me?" The very thought made the spot tingle slightly. Not in pain, but in...nostalgia, perhaps. "That was crude magic."

"Why is it called crude? It did what it was supposed to, right?"

The swordswoman cleared her throat uncomfortably, not particularly relishing the thought of pointing out the lack of skill in her love's magic. "Well, frankly, that display of magic was very...messy. You grossly over-exerted yourself for what should have been a simple healing spell; the excess magic was burned in something of an aura, a bit of a flare to something weird going on. It was also cast not of knowledge, but of emotion. That produces an unstable effect, and the actual effect can be quite different than the intention." She seemed to become rather lost in the subject, and she continued the short lesson with gusto. "Many of the more famous "magicians" around the world have been crude magic users. Houdini, for instance, was a good example of a crude mage. There're actually a lot of them across the world. They're all basically ignored by magic society."

Konoka's nod of understanding was rather like that of a bobble-head on a dashboard; completely automatic. With a sigh, Setsuna waved her fork dismissively at Konoka. "Your grandfather can explain it a lot better, I'm sure."

"Okay." With a satisfied smile, Konoka returned to the stabbing of her meat sauce with her breadstick of a sword. Setsuna smiled at the picture of nearly child-like innocent enjoyment of playing with food, and was reminded that no matter how mature Konoka acted, she was no older than herself.

The smile turned into one of self-satisfaction as Konoka looked up from her food to find Setsuna staring across the table at her. _And she loves ME._

Konoka gulped down the breadstick and cocked an eyebrow quizzically at the other girl. "What?"

With a chuckle, Setsuna reached across the table and, with her index finger, wiped a bit of sauce from the corner of Konoka's mouth. Allowing herself a grin, she licked the still-warm sauce from her finger before replying. "Just thinking about how lucky I am, Kono-chan."

_Author's Notes – Well, that's the first chapter. While you wait the short while it'll be for chapter 2 (since it's already written) go ahead and leave a review please. They're MUCH appreciated, and I'll see you soon!_

**Footnotes: **

**Magic Allocation –** A class in which a mage is taught how best to use their magic in a non-wasteful manner and still be effective.

**Arithmancy –** A Chaldean and Greek method of dividing numbers to determine fate and the future.

**Alchemy –** The ancient art of combining elements to form something entirely different.

**Kanto Magic Association –** The group of Magi that control the Kanto region of Japan.

**Cinema Village –** In an attempt to save the life of Sakurazaki Setsuna, Konoe Konoka accessed, unintentionally, her latent magical abilities in a burst of light and energy, though she did succeed in saving the swordswoman.


	2. Preparations Must Be Made

**_Disclaimer: If Negima can be brought by GPAs, we'll never have enough to pay. So, sadly, Negima is still Akamatsu's._**

_OkashiraShinomori: After a great many corrections, we can present you chapter two!_

_ChibiSecchan: With incorrect context, broken Trillian and numerous "teh"s in these pages too._

_OkashiraShinomori: ((Shudders.)) This chapter has definitely had to have the most work done to it, and the most time spent getting frustrated over it._

_ChibiSecchan: Plus I have to put up with my GPA...((Kick transcript))_

_OkashiraShinomori: ((Nods.)) We're really having trouble keeping things together around here long enough to do any writing, it seems._

_ChibiSecchan: At the end, we've got something. I guess that's all that matters._

_**Gradual Changes Book 1 - Newer Bits of Life**_

_**Chapter 02**_

_**Preparations Must Be Made**_

_**By OkashiraShinomori and ChibiSecchan**_

**_Beta reading by Shinmeiryuu and Spiritmage_**

"**Across the room, Setsuna fought one of her toughest battles to date."**

Konoka peered, wide-eyed, at the small store-front before her. It was one she frequented when she could, being a favorite of hers for its occult stock. Previously, such things had been merely a fascinating hobby, nothing more. Lately when she had visited the shop, it had been with skepticism of its wares' actual magical potential. Now she would see through yet another pair of eyes. A pair that had to come to terms with the fact that the owner, the staff, and several of the customers were innately magical as she herself was.

Setsuna watched her girlfriend curiously, finding the awe with which she watched the shop amusing in an innocent way. _She's really got a lot to learn about the magical world._ With a small smile, she placed a hand in the small of the Konoe heir's back and applied gentle pressure, "Shall we go in, Kono-chan?"

Konoka looked back at her knight and blinked, slightly flustered at being caught so deep in her thoughts. "Uh..." she blinked again and her gaze refocused, "yeah let's go!" She skipped up the curb and on through the open doors, breathing deeply of the ever-present incense.

"Welcome, Konoka-san," the voice of an elderly woman called from behind the counter. Her long graying hair was tied up into something of a messy bun, stray wisps hanging down in front of her withered but smiling face. She stepped spryly from behind the counter, hobbling quickly towards one of her favorite customers. "Have you been well?"

Konoka nodded dutifully, frowning slightly at the title. However, in light of recent facts becoming known to her, she supposed it was understandable. "I've been quite well, Hanagawa-san. You?"

The woman waved the question off as if it were of negligible importance. "I'm still here, and that's good enough for me." A small smile wrinkling her face further, she peered over Konoka's shoulder at her athletic companion. "And who might this be?"

Setsuna bowed stiffly, trying to make sure Yuunagi knocked nothing from the shelves. "My name is Sakurazaki Setsuna. I am a student of Mahora Academy's girl's middle school, and Kono-chan's," her cheeks began to heat up, "girlfriend," until they rivaled the surface of the sun. Normally she would not have so easily digressed such, but Konoka had confided in her previously that the elderly woman was considered to be an aunt by her.

Hanagawa's smile widened further as she looked Setsuna up and down. "I thought so. You're just the way Konoka-san described you." Setsuna looked up in some surprise, a question in her eyes. "Oh yes, she's spoken of you. Won't stop, as a matter of fact," she finished with a chuckle. At this, even Konoka blushed a bit.

With a different kind of smile, she turned back tot he young mage. "Now, what can I do for you, Konoka-san? We've just received a new shipment of tarot cards yesterday morning. I know you must have five sets or more," she laughed, "but the backs of these are really quite remarkable."

Setsuna's chosen charge raised her hands in a halting manner, waiting for the shopkeeper to stop talking before she explained. "Actually, Hanagawa-san, I'm here for school supplies."

The elderly woman's face went blank, then she cocked an eyebrow in confusion. "Here, Konoka-san?" She placed a finger to her chin thoughtfully and allowed her gaze to drift to the ceiling as if a list of her inventory was written there. "I have paper and pens and such, I'm sure, but nothing else I think you'll find useful."

"Actually, I think you have exactly what we need." Her knowing smile prompted a flatly confused look from the shopkeeper, and Konoka's assuredness of the woman being a mage wavered slightly. _Too late to back out though..._ Konoka pulled a paper from the pocket of her gray, hooded jacket and unfolded it, scouring it quickly. "Do you have two blank spell books, a mana gauge, and a beginner's wand?"

Stunned silence filled the shop momentarily, and its three occupants merely stared at each other, two expectantly and one confused. Hanagawa cleared her throat and broke the silence, "I was under the impression that you were never to know of your magic, Konoka-san. I was told by your grandfather that it was your father's desire. Seeing as how you frequent this shop, they wanted to be sure I let nothing slip..." She frowned slightly. _I could be in very deep trouble if it's my fault she knows..._ The woman sidled up next to Konoka. "Uh...I didn't do anything to clue you in, did I?"

Konoka blinked, then shook her head. "Oh no. Something else entirely, Hanagawa-san." She smiled comfortingly at the woman, who slumped in obvious relief.

"Oh good," she smiled up at Konoka. "Your grandfather'd have my head if it was my fault." Konoka chuckled at the comment, finding it difficult to imagine the seemingly frail old man doing anything of the sort. He was not the sort that was prone to violence.

After Hanagawa had recollected herself, she motioned for Konoka to follow here and bustled off. "Please follow me, girls." She cast a glance over her shoulder, "Sakurazaki-san, will you be needing any school supplies?"

Setsuna pulled her own list out of her denim skirt pocket and read through it quickly. "It seems I need a beginner's wand, a mana gauge, and a unicorn hair calligraphy brush." _THAT'S gonna be expensive..._

Hanagawa ushered them into a room at the back of the occult goods store. It wasn't as large as the main room, but it seemed to contain less items as well. Rather than the nice wooden shelves from earlier, bare metal ones stood, looking somewhat skeletal. Upon them sat plain card-board boxes, some sealed, some not. Setsuna and Konoka both furrowed their brows at seeing where they'd been led, and cast curious glances at he shorter woman.

With a wink at the couple, she uttered a word, and grinned as the card-board boxes seemed to dissolve. Across the room, seemingly ordinary, and rather dusty, items dissolved, leaving much more interesting things in their places. Many of the shelves where lined with books, most of which were blank on both the cover and the spine. Others seemed normal enough, although Konoka was certain that the titles would prove far more interesting. Along the back wall, a locked case seemed to contain basic practice wands and pieces of jewelry, no doubt with an enchantment of some sort on them. Boxes of different shapes and sizes where stacked along the remaining shelves, with an example of their contents on display atop the stack.

"While I'm getting that brush, you two can go ahead and browse the wands and books Anything without a title will suit your needs." With an ushering hand gesture, she stepped through another doorway into what was, apparently, a real storage room.

Once she was out of sight, Konoka looked up at Setsuna, excitement gleaming in her soft eyes. "That was awesome, Secchan! I had no idea it was all fake!" She turned her gaze back to the room around her, as if still in disbelief. "Just think, if this is hidden, what else is hidden? Anything could be anywhere!"

With a private grin, Setsuna quelled the urge to reach out and ruffle Konoka's hair as one would a child's. "This is just the tip of the iceberg. We've got stuff like this all over Mahora." The cute look of disbelief that followed the statement managed to force a chuckle from the swordswoman. "You'll see when you get to our new school. I think you're really gonna enjoy it."

"Stop talking about it! I'm excited enough as it is," she giggled, playfully pushing Setsuna towards the locked cases. Setsuna resisted just enough to ensure she wasn't moved, a satisfied smile on her face. Konoka pushed again, but to no avail. An idea occurred to the swordswoman, and a sly grin spread across her countenance. Konoka leaned her shoulder to the task, only to feel Setsuna spin to the side

With a yelp, Konoka nearly fell through the glass cases before them. Laughing softly, Setsuna followed, laughing harder when made a playful lunge at her. Setsuna pointed at the case of wands as she dodged her now giggling love again. "Let's just choose wands, shall we?" Still chuckling to herself, Konoka turned her gaze on the twenty or thirty simplistic looking practice wands.

They were rather lame as wands go, mainly consisting of a rod topped with an astronomical symbol of some sorts, looking for all the world like the kind of wand one would see on a children's show. That fact was no damper on the young healer's enthusiasm, however. She appeared to be critically examining each of them, as if it were a life and death decision between which to pick. Setsuna's gaze was hardly as interested. She figured herself more fit for combat than magic, and had no intention of wasting any time choosing a wand. She pointed lazily through the case, "I guess I'll take that one."

Konoka followed her gesture and saw that she was indicating a plain wand topped with a shining silver crescent moon. Konoka giggled and pointed at her choice beside Setsuna's, "How convenient." Her own wand was, at its base, identical to Setsuna's except that the silver moon had been replaced with a golden sun.

"That does seem rather appropriate," Setsuna grinned at the shorter girl.

"Not to say we're as different as night and day," Konoka giggled, then considered the statement. "Although I guess we _are_." She giggled again, and Setsuna frowned slightly, but dismissed it.

_Opposites attract, right?_ She wandered over to one of the nearer bookshelves, scanning the covers in a bored fashion as she didn't need to get one for herself. As she expected, her Kono-chan followed quickly, doing as her knight was. As Konoka browsed, silence fell except for the noise of Hanagawa rummaging around in the back room.

The shorter of the two girls let out a quiet exclamation and pulled a book from the shelves. The cover was of black velvet with scrawling silver metalwork across it. As she gently opened the cover, she saw that the impossibly white, gold-edged pages were crisp and ready for ink. She flipped through a couple pages, then re-closed it, running one hand over the spine in something of an awed caress. "I really like this one, don't you, Secchan?" She held the book out her girlfriend, her gaze seeking approval.

After giving the book the same run-through that Konoka had, Setsuna handed it back with a nod. "Looks good. I love the velvet." Beaming, Konoka took the book back and tucked it happily under one arm, not bothering to examine the price that sat below the books on the shelf. She eagerly looked through the shelves and quickly plucked a book quite similar to the one she had, although the velvet was a sky blue, rather than black.

"Here you are, Sakurazaki-san. One unicorn hair brush." Konoka jumped, nearly dropping her books, as the now amiable silence was broken by Hanagawa's wizened voice.

"Thank you," Setsuna bowed her head as she gingerly took the long box from the shopkeeper. As her sharp eyes caught the price on the end of the box, she couldn't help but cringe slightly. _Good thing I have just a few things on my list..._

"Now," Hanagawa clasped her hands before her and flicked her gaze between the two girls," have you two chosen your wands?" An affirmative nod from Konoka initiated a small smile from the woman. "Good, good. Which are they?"

Stepping nearer the case, Setsuna pointed at her silver wand. "That one, with the half moon, and the one to it's left."

She blushed darkly as Hanagawa chuckled, "A matching set; how cute." With a few muttered words and the turn of an ornate key she had produced from her pocket as if by magic, she slid the front of the case open and pulled matching boxes from beneath the individual wands, opening them briefly to make sure they were the correct ones. Rather than hand them over, she placed them onto the countertop and turned briefly back to the girls. "And you said you each needed a mana gauge?"

They nodded silently, only to get the same in return before she politely brushed past them, heading for a display near the back of the room. With a glance at each other, they followed the spry older woman, each keeping careful hold of their packages. Humming to herself, she began picking through a box of what appeared to be stopwatches. She held one up closer to her face and pressed a button. She stopped humming and furrowed her brow at the little device. She continued to press buttons on the things, apparently not to the desired effect, until she was muttering quite darkly under her breath. With a final frustrated glare, she dropped the thing back from whence it came and turned back to the half-amused, half-confused girls, plastering a smile back onto her face.

"Just for you, Konoka-san, I'll make a special deal." She strode quickly around a freestanding shelving unit, motioning for them to follow her. The shopkeeper walked quickly behind the counter and, bending, withdrew a box from beneath the countertop. She gently deposited it on the spacious surface and opened it. "Here you are." From within the box she produced two pendant-like things, which she handed to her prospective customers.

The items were a dark blue and somewhat oval shaped, although what appeared to be a small pair of angelic wings adorned the top. Between them where the pure white chain connected itself was a small, well-disguised button. Somewhat blindly, Konoka pushed the button."

"Wow!" she squealed in delight. The intricately carved front of the pendant seemed to dissolve, revealing a small, high-resolution digital screen, currently displaying the time and date. She clicked the button again, and the display changed instantly to a circular gauge, displaying the numbers 1 through 100 with a digital red needle currently resting at 99.

"That's the mana gauge. It'll display how much magical energy you have remaining. After casting a spell, it will also tell you how much energy was expended in the casting." The girls both nodded, and Setsuna clicked her own gauge one screen further.

"Huh?" A red rectangle was displayed, "Inactive" flashing within it in bold white letters.

Hanagawa peered over the counter at Setsuna's gauge. "That is the third and final function. Because this is a combination of magic and technology, it has far wider capabilities than an object of only one orientation. It has the ability to erect a very basic magic shield around you. It will drain your energy in the process, but it won't require you to concentrate to maintain it. Just tap the rectangle."

Somewhat hesitantly, Setsuna did so. With an odd sort of chirp, the rectangle flashed green and displayed "Active." "You now have an extremely basic magic shield covering you." As if to prove her point, Hanagawa quickly pulled a decorative fan from within her obi, and with a muttered word, sent a stream of water at the swordswoman. Setsuna began to step back instinctively, but stopped when the water seemed to hit an invisible barrier. It exploded across the shield's surface, bouncing off and running down the magical protection.

Konoka squealed when some of the water splashed onto her, but continued to watch Setsuna delightedly. She quickly activated her own shield, and yelped as a crackling filled the air. A wall of blue energy stood between the two girls. In an instant, Setsuna leapt backwards, and the wall dissipated instantly.

"Ah yes, that happens when two shields come in contact. Basic ones, anyway. Since they're both magical, they try to shield against the other and, well, you saw the result." She waved her hand dismissively with a small laugh. "Two weeks into the school year, and you _should_ be able to produce a more refined shield than that."

Konoka perked up slightly. "How refined can a shield be?" Her eyes were trained hungrily on the woman, seeking information on what would be a subject of study.

With something of a sly grin, Hanagawa fiddled with the fan that was apparently her magical focus. "I wouldn't know. I never completed the course when I was in Gerhardt." She noticed the question in Konoka's eyes and continued. "I was an exchange student, you see. Gerhardt School of Magic is a German school. Their magic is slightly different from other western magic. It consists of more geomancy than anything, but it's otherwise the same." Silence descended for a few seconds until a question occurred to the older mage.

"What school are you two attending?"

Both students cast her blank looks, then looked at each other, then back at her, each almost completely mirrored by the other. As Setsuna shrugged, Konoka frowned slightly, answering, "I don't know, actually. It, uh, hadn't occurred to me to look."

She dug through her pocket again for the list, and scanned it curiously when she finally produced it with a triumphant noise. Her mouth formed a small "o" of recognition as she read the header. "It's the Asian Academy of the Arcane." A low whistle stopped her before she could continue.

"Now that's impressive, girls."

"Why's that?" Setsuna asked, the first she'd spoken in the past few minutes.

"Do you know of the Meldiana School of Magic?"

"Yes, that's where Negi-sensei was taught," clarified the swordswoman, wondering how the two schools were apparently related.

As she spoke, Hanagawa began filing receipts and opening rolls of coins into the cash drawer. "They're sister schools, and some of the highest respected magic schools the world around. Both your father and grandfather went there, Konoka-san," her gaze was expectant, "and graduated with honors."

Both girls picked up on the underlying message, and Setsuna realized that Konoka had more pressure on her even than before. Simply being the heiress of the Kansai Magic Association was difficult enough, but she had to learn under the shadow of her father and grandfather as well.

Konoka gulped and fiddled absently with her mana gauge, flipping through the various screens. Her loving knight stepped closer, but remained silent. "What kinds of honors, Hanagawa-san?"

Realizing her error, Hanagawa hesitated to answer, but saw no way to worm out of it. "Well," she looked down at her withered hands, uncomfortable at having to put such a load on the sweet girl's shoulders, "they were both Valedictorian of their year, and your grandfather even improved several of the courses. Your father's sword skill was well known as well."

Konoka was silent for a moment, and Setsuna could sense her good mood quickly draining away. "That's...an awful lot to live up to..."

Blushing very slightly in the presence of Hanagawa, Setsuna laid her hand supportively on Konoka's shoulder and squeezed gently. "You don't have to "live up" to anything, Kono-chan. You are not your father or grandfather; you're you. It's unfair to expect anything more from you just because of them." Setsuna tried to lighten the mood, not something she was particularly good at, but was willing to try for Konoka, "But I know you could do better than either of them without trying."

Konoka smiled feebly at her Secchan, then broke eye contact when she dipped her head to remove the pendant. She placed it atop her books and slid them across the counter. Silently, Hanagawa began to ring up the purchases, regretting her comments, as Setsuna also placed her prospective purchases closer.

The swordswoman's mood, already dampened by her love's, only worsened as the digital display of the total climbed ever higher. It seemed the mana gauges alone where 7,500 Yen each, not to mention the 10,000 Yen wands, easily the largest of the purchases thus far. Setsuna was hard put to keep her jaw locked in place when her brush flashed on screen at 26,900 Yen. When all was said and done, Setsuna' purchases easily outweighed Konoka's and she had already begun counting how many months it would be that her paycheck would go to pay for these when her Kono-chan pulled a thick roll of money from her skirt pocket.

At this, Setsuna was unable to hold back, and gaped openly. "You've had that much money with you all this time!"

Konoka nodded innocently, handing the money across the counter, not bothering to count out the actual amount. Hanagawa took the roll with slightly wide eyes and a very small bow. "Gramps said it'd be okay with me 'cause you're here." She sounded as if it was the most obvious thing in the world, and Setsuna went silent, then smiled in appreciation.

_Nice to know he trusts me with his granddaughter _and_ large amounts of money, _she thought with a touch of amusement.

Hanagawa quickly separated the bills and arrayed them within her hand, dropping several coins into a plastic container on the counter. "Your change is 55,100 Yen." Her slightly withered fingers glided across the bills, proving the amount as was customary.　Slightly awed at the amount of money she was giving a fifteen year old, she handed it back to the young healer, who took it casually and slipped it into her pocket, out of sight, and apparently out of mind.

Now even more on edge, Setsuna had to force herself not to prowl around the room checking to be sure that all was secure. She wasn't, however, able to suppress the urge to keep her hand from resting cautiously on Yuunagi's hilt. She knew it illogical, but it suddenly seemed as if people would be looking more closely at her willing charge, looking for a victim. Such thoughts were untrue, but when the person in question is a person that one cares deeply for, logic doesn't always prevail.

Setsuna stiffened when Konoka's small hand alighted on her arm. The smaller girl giggled, "You don't have to get all worried, Secchan." She playfully screwed her face into one of low-key disgust. "You're no fun when you're all worried and serious."

Not certain why, Setsuna blushed and allowed her hand to return to her side. "Er...sorry, Kono-chan." She attempted a smile, hoping it would help to dispel her sudden surge of protective instinct.

Konoka grinned happily, either having recovered her mood, or improving her skills as an actress.

"Here you are, Konoka-san," Hanagawa's voice broke into what had rapidly been becoming their own little world, and with a blink Setsuna turned back to the counter. Several cloth bags sat on the counter, some showing signs of containing oddly shaped objects. Before Konoka could make a move to do so, Setsuna swept the bags up, holding them easily in one hand.

Hanagawa picked up her fan and began to walk towards the doorway. "Thank you for your patronage, Konoka-san, and good luck at A3; I know you'll enjoy it." She smiled at the couple as they strode by. With an energetic wave at the older woman, Konoka all but bounced through the normal part of the shop into the street, her excitement quite obvious.

Setsuna took the distance at a more normal pace, casually swinging the bags at her side. "Are we a little happy, Kono-chan?"

"Yes!" Konoka exclaimed with a short jump. She wrapped her arms around Secchan's left, bringing to life, once again, the blush she loved so much.

Setsuna was unable to stop the cursory self-conscious glance around the area as Konoka hugged her arm happily. She immediately cursed herself mentally for the action. To many, it would look like a sign of shame, as if she didn't like that Konoka's affection for her was known, but that wasn't the case at all. As if to prove, even if only to herself, that she was indeed proud of her relationship with her Kono-chan, her left hand sought one of Konoka's, and she squeezed gently, smiling down at her love.

Konoka was still for a moment, surprised at Setsuna's small display of affection. She didn't realize its significance, but still loved the gesture. Deciding to use it for all it's worth, she nuzzled Setsuna's shoulder, closing her eyes happily. Setsuna blushed further, succeeding in not looking around warily. She squeezed her hand again, and they started off down the street, almost ignorant of the rest of the world.

After a few moments of silent comfortable companionship, Konoka struck up a conversation that was long in coming. "We've only got a few days left, Secchan. Then we have to tell everyone goodbye." She hugged Setsuna's arm tighter and buried her face in Setsuna's shoulder.

Setsuna nodded, turning her thoughts to that subject. Normally, being moved like that wouldn't be a problem. Setsuna's single-minded training hadn't afforded her any friends previously. Even among her teachers within the Shinmeiryuu, she had no friends. As a rule, they weren't to show affection to any of their students, but as in anything, some people have an instant connection, and friendships only naturally spring up. That hadn't been true for Setsuna, but she convinced herself that such was not necessary. She had her training to occupy her time, and thoughts of her high-born friend to occupy her mind.

Now she had at least three friends to say goodbye to, none of whom would be particularly easy for her. She squeezed Konoka's hand again, "They'll understand, I'm sure." She attempted a chuckle," They'll probably be jealous, you know."

Konoka smiled into her knight's shirt, "Yeah, that's probably true, Secchan." She was silent for a moment. "It's still going to be tough though..."

"Yeah." Setsuna looked down at Konoka, a playful mock-glare on her face. "It's all your fault, Kono-chan."

Konoka looked up, distressed at Setsuna's strong words. "If it weren't for you, I wouldn't be friends with Negi-sensei and Asuna-san." Konoka smiled, sensing the implied jest.

_Secchan is in a good mood today._ She sighed and the two turned a corner, threading through the crowd of people waiting for the signal that they could cross the street. "What're you gonna tell everyone who doesn't know about magic? I don't wanna lie, but..."

"Well then, don't lie." She shrugged and kept her eyes forward rather than look down at Konoka's questioning gaze. "Just say we're transferring to a private school for specialized training."

A half-hearted noise of assent marked Konoka's agreement, although it was obvious that discomfort lingered still. Setsuna reassuringly entangled her fingers with Konoka's and drew the slighter girl closer. "It'll be fine, Kono-chan." She smiled in spite of herself. _Usually it's Kono-chan comforting me, not I her._

Her face once again buried against Setsuna's shoulder, Konoka's grip tightened on her arm, her free hand trailing lightly along her arm to rest on the back of her upper arm. Setsuna blushed when she saw an elderly man raise a curious eyebrow at the two. Her step, and thusly Konoka's, quickened, only to stop abruptly but a few meters away. Konoka lifter her head to see why they'd stopped.

"How does ice-cream sound, Kono-chan?"

Konoka's delighted squeal of approval brought a grin and a flush to Setsuna's face. "What flavor? Chocolate, I suppose?" She laughed quietly when Konoka nodded vigorously.

The couple stepped up to the stand-alone ice cream vendor, finding themselves rather fortunate when the man in front of them immediately finished his purchase and strode off, happily nursing a milkshake. "How can I help you girls?" The employee, a young man, likely of high school age, grinned at the two of them.

Konoka immediately replied with a happy "Two double chocolate ice cream cones!" She shut her mouth and cast an apologetic look at Setsuna when she remembered which one of them was paying. The taller girl nodded her consent, sending her hair gathered to one side to flip about somewhat.

"Coming right up, ladies." Before turning his back to the ice cream dispenser, he winked at Konoka, his gaze not even traveling over the swordswoman.

The Konoe heir stepped back, almost as if hiding behind her knight, an uncomfortable feeling pervading her. Glaring, Setsuna stepped up to take her place, quickly sitting the money on the counter. The attendant turned around, holding the heaping cones in his hands, a cocky smile on his face, only to encounter Setsuna's cold glare. In his surprise, he nearly dropped one of the cones, the delicious brown substance shifted about unstably.

"Eh...here you are..." As if he thought the dark-haired young woman would bite him, he gingerly handed the snacks to her. In a last-ditch effort to salvage his damaged ego, he attempted to resurrect his hopeful, cocky grin.

"Thank you." Behind her, Konoka shuddered at the sound of her voice. She had only heard that tone once, and at the time she had been in a magic induced haze. The low sound sent chills up her spine and through her heart. Instinctively, she clasped her small fist around the loose material of the back of Setsuna's shirt, stepping slightly closer, hoping for some reassuring sign that her Secchan's feelings were unchanged, despite knowing it was not directed at her.

His expression changing to one of out-and-out fright, the poor attendant actually stepped back from the counter, taking the money in shaking hands. "C-come again, ladies..."

Setsuna cast her hardest glare at the young man and spun gently around, mindful of Konoka's grip on her shirt. With a pleasant smile, she handed the girl the larger of the two cold snacks. "Bom apecheat, Kono-chan."

The slightly younger girl blinked, processing her girlfriend's foreign phrasing, then burst out laughing. "That's 'bon appetite,' Secchan," she corrected through her laughter as she took the proffered treat.

Now smiling genuinely, Setsuna licked at the delicious substance so loved by the two of them. She found that although their employment policy left a lot to be desired, the product itself was quite good. A pleased sound from deep in Konoka's throat seemed to suggest that the feeling was mutual.

As if on an unspoken cue, the duo began to stroll once again down the moderately crowded street, Konoka sticking by Setsuna unconsciously, drawn to her as a moth to flame. She sidled up next to her more than willing protector and butted her shoulder with her forehead. Both eyebrows raised in confusion, Setsuna looked down at her.

Konoka couldn't contain her giggle upon seeing the ice cream "mustache" that decorated Setsuna's upper lip. She immediately knew how she wanted to clean the excess chocolate off, but had no wish to inflict the extreme discomfort on her skittish love. Rather she opted to simply enjoy the moment. She giggled again and looked off across the street, pretending for a short moment that her Secchan didn't exist. Her expression still one of confusion, the hanyou returned her attention to her ice cream.

"Kono-chan, have you ever been to this store with our uniforms before?"

"Mmm..." she shook her head, "Nope, Secchan." She switched her ice cream to her other hand and yanked a disorganized assortment of papers from her pocket. The two stopped and stepped up against a wall as Konoka began awkwardly sorting through the sheets one-handed, finally producing a sheet with a hastily written address.

_So we've just been wandering around?_ Setsuna allowed a slightly irked expression to tug on her normally emotionless features. She bit into the stiff structure of the cone itself as Konoka stuck the corner of the rest of the papers in her mouth to hold them, then flipped her hand-written note around so she could read it.

She said something, but due to the papers, Setsuna heard only a cute muffled sound. With a shadow of a wry smile, the swordswoman reached out and plucked the papers from her mouth. Konoka licked her lips and reiterated, "We're pretty close, Secchan."

Setsuna popped the remainder of her ice cream into her mouth and nodded in understanding. "May I?" She held out her hand for the paper, then flicked her eyes to the surrounding street sighs. "Hmph. We are pretty close." She looked again at the sheet. "Two blocks too far West." Konoka hurriedly finished her cone as Setsuna observed the roads, looking for the least busy route. When Konoka's papers had returned to the pocket and Setsuna's upper lip had been freed from chocolate, the two were lucky enough to find the crossing light in their favor. With Setsuna guiding them, the two shortly came upon the store.

The hanyou eyed it with a cautious gaze, not at all liking the looks of it. Its appearance was outwardly rather like any building built back in the Meiji era, mostly of wood construct, although it was in better condition than most of its apparent age would be. The wood, although graying with age, was unusually dense, and showed little sign of wear. The difference was in the feel of the building. Setsuna shivered upon trying to match the feel with others she knew. _It's got an aura like the school's...and Kono-chan's home...Why does a shop need that kind of power?_ Her grip on Yuunagi's hardwood hilt tightened, drawing strength from its silent support.

"What an old building." Setsuna twitched slightly at Konoka's voice, completely brought out of the thoughtful mood the atmosphere had induced. "I don't like it."

_Maybe she senses the aura too..._ In an attempt to appear as if she were waylaying Konoka's discomfort, Setsuna double-checked the address against Konoka's sheet. "Well, it's the right place..." With a defeated sigh, she tucked the paper safely in a pocket and stepped up to the aged building, holding wide the cloth divider in the doorway for Konoka.

A look of trepidation on her cute features, the mage stepped through the doorway, easily slipped her shoes off and the provided slippers on. She wriggled her toes within the cloth confinement and found to her annoyance that they were a size too big. She glared down at the footwear, and as Setsuna stepped up onto the raised wooden floor, also in slippers, she raised an eyebrow. "Something wrong?"

A pout greeted her gaze, "They're too big."

Setsuna chortled quietly at the contrast between a few seconds ago and her love's new problem. She tugged at Konoka's hand, a more open gesture than normal, "C'mon, let's get this over with." Her shoes making loud slapping noises, Konoka followed obediently through the shop. It was a little hard to get used to seeing gleaming metal racks of clothes in such an environment, as such a building would normally have been sparsely decorated at the time of its creation. From the low ceiling hung various ads, most of which were out of date, about sales the shop was having.

The couple threaded their way through the clothes, Konoka occasionally slowing down to check out a shirt or some such, only to be playfully pulled ahead again by Setsuna. Near the west wall, they found a counter-top with a distinctly out of place PC at the far end. With a droll expression, a girl their age lazily tapped at the keyboard, her uninterested gaze flicking to a pad of paper beside the mouse at regular intervals.

Setsuna didn't notice when Konoka hung back as she stepped up to the counter. "Excuse me, we need uniforms."

"Welcome." Her voice held a cultured lilt to it, despite the absolute boredom evident in it. "I'm afraid you'll have to wait for my mother before you get any uniforms."

With a frown, Setsuna decided instantly that the girl was not only from Kyoto, as evidenced by her accent, but was also very rude. "And how long will that be?"

Cold brown eyes locked with her own and the tapping of the keyboard ceased. "If I knew, I'd've told you." As Setsuna's frown deepened, the girl's eyes strayed to Konoka, then widened. Setsuna turned on her heel at hearing Konoka's accompanying gasp.

"Kumiko?" Konoka stepped nearer to Setsuna, setting one hand on her shoulder, the other gripping her sleeve. Setsuna's now faintly blushing gaze returned to the girl that Konoka apparently recognized.

The long-haired girl stepped back from the counter, her jaw slightly slack. "Konoka?" Along with her voice, her entire demeanor had changed.

At this, Setsuna blinked. _Konoka? That presumptuous little...to call Kono-chan so blatantly upon just meeting..._ Without her volition, Yuunagi slid several centimeters from its sheath, the swirling pattern of its sharpened edge gleaming in the ambient light.

"I...do you live in the Mahora district?" the girl asked, something akin to a hopeful spark in her eyes. As if the situation seemed sane once more, she stepped up to the counter, bracing herself against its polished surface.

Konoka nodded silently, her grip tightening on Setsuna's sleeve. The swordswoman frowned slightly more, unable to discern exactly what her Kono-chan was feeling. _She acts uncomfortable, to be sure, but is she...excited?_ She found that the two feelings created quite the interesting dilemma as to what should be done. Deciding to go with instinct, she stepped slightly nearer the counter, her gaze hardening.

"What right have you to inquire into Ojousama's life?" The title fell from her tongue with an odd weight. It had been a while since she'd referred to her as such.

Kumiko cocked an eyebrow, her surprised gaze once more becoming one of disdain. "More right than you, I'd expect."

Setsuna's eyes became as onyx and she tightened her grip on Yuunagi's hilt, drawing it a bit further. "I find that extremely doubtful. I am Kono-chan's, er..." her face grew crimson and she stumbled for words, "I'm Kono-chan's bodyguard and best friend, and you are a complete stranger."

The rather profound blush on the sword-bearing girl's face piqued Kumiko's interest, but she was unable to dispute it, having been separated from Konoka for so long. Her eyes widened in some small amount of shock at the revelation, then narrowed in anger. "A 'complete stranger,' am I? Konoka, please tell this...please tell her," she restated herself out of sheer manners, "who I am."

Konoka tugged gently on Setsuna's sleeve, her pleading gaze not quite enough to convince the taller girl to relax. "Please, Secchan. Kumiko's a friend." She nodded at the brief look of disbelief that crossed her face. "Right before I met you, Kumiko came to live with us. We didn't get along very well at first, then I met you and almost forgot about Kumiko. But whenever you were called away for more training or something, we became friends." Her soft gaze shifted to the other girl. "For some reason, I don't think the two of you ever met."

Kumiko managed, with some difficulty, to contain her utter surprise and disgust. "Wait, wait, wait. What's your name?" Her demand was directed at Setsuna.

"Sakurazaki Setsuna." Her voice, loud and clear, rang through the store, and Kumiko outwardly winced, her jaw dropping again.

She stepped back once more, fear and disgust displayed outwardly on her features. As both girls on the other side of the counter started in surprise at her strong reaction, she recovered herself and drew a deep breath. "I am Kuroshima Kumiko."

Uncomfortable silence fell among the three. Konoka shifted her weight from one foot to the other, watching her love and a person she'd forgotten about completely glower at each other. _I wonder why they don't' like each other...I don't remember Kumiko being this mean before._ She whimpered, and Setsuna instantly fell back to her side, although her eyes remained fixed on the other girl.

Setsuna mentally berated herself for showing such animosity towards one whom Kono-chan considered a friend. Something about the girl's attitude and her general reactions to her name set her on edge immediately. _At least,_ Setsuna conceded, _she's civil with Kono-chan._ Her eyes narrowed further and a before un-felt feeling arose at another of her thoughts. _Although I'd prefer they didn't interact all._

She sighed and forced her body to relax. Konoka jumped slightly when a dull clank, the sheathing of Yuunagi, rang out. Setsuna's eyes softened, almost to their usual seemingly emotionless state. "It is a pleasure to meet a former friend of Kono-chan's." Setsuna waited with baited breath for Konoka to refute her choice of "former." It never came.

Kumiko's left eye twitched at the swordswoman's words. _How DARE she speak that way to me... _She smiled at the couple, then said with genuine hopefulness, "But if you're going to A3 like me, Konoka, we can be friends again."

"How did you know we're attending A3?" Konoka couldn't help but think of her class at Mahora Academy upon saying the abbreviated name of her and Setsuna's new school.

The girl blinked. "So you aregoing?" She was completely ignoring Setsuna now. "Is it your first year?"

"Yup!" Konoka's voice rose in excitement. She slipped her arm through Setsuna's left and rested her head on her upper arm as if sensing her love's sudden distress. "We're both goin'."

Forcing her unease at such publicly displayed affection down, Setsuna kissed the top of Konoka's head, blushing darker than a sunset. "Indeed we are." She fired her hardest expression at the girl whom she had an immediate dislike for.

She stil managed to ignore the hanyou's cold expression. "That's great! It's my first year too!"

Konoka felt Setsuna stiffen again, and her soft eyes flicked momentarily to her face. The discomfort and pure aggression etched there puzzled the kind girl, but she resolved not to bring it up until the two were alone. She did find it slightly irksome that Setsuna hadn't yet given Kumiko a chance, and seemed to dislike her immediately.

As a sigh of confusion escaped her unintentionally, a door a ways down the wall burst open, admitting a middle aged woman into the room. All three girls jumped in surprise at the racket produced by the sturdy glass pane door. "Dammit, Kumiko, where did you put that roll of emerald silk?" She fixed a fiery expression on the girl, who quailed visibly at the outburst.

The woman's roving eyes traveled next to the two girls on the other side of the counter. "Ack! Customers!" She bowed repeatedly, her voice taking on a strained tone. "Please forgive my sudden outburst, ladies. If my daughter," she fixed another glare on Kumiko, "was more organized, you would not have seen that."

Setsuna stared hard at he woman, trying to read her. Kumiko's behavior would be slightly more acceptable if she had to deal with one who seemed to have violently loud tendencies. _Like mother, like daughter..._

"No no no, it's fine, Kuroshima-san." Konoka fielded a helpful smile while waving off the apology with her free hand.

The woman stopped mid-bow and craned her neck back to look at Konoka. "Do you know me, miss?" Before Konoka could answer, the eldest of the four gasped slightly and straightened quickly. Setsuna couldn't' help but wince when she heard her back pop in protest. "Konoka-ojousama?"

Konoka nodded vigorously. "I...er...that is..." Her face flushed and she looked between Konoka and her daughter. In the midst of her search for words, her gaze came to rest on the girl her former charge was attached to. Her eyes widened yet more. "You!"

Somewhat confused, Setsuna looked down at her friend, then back at the woman she didn't think she knew. "Um...yes?"

"It IS you!" Kuroshima was visibly keeping herself from stalking across the floor. Her knuckles were white due to the strength with which she clenched her fists.

With a quiet whimper, Konoka shrunk closer to Setsuna's side, thoroughly confused. The woman before them had, to her memory, never been so temperamental. Years in the past she had been one who'd cared for Konoka. She had considered her to be like an aunt; almost family. Konoka couldn't even remember a time the woman had raised her voice, let alone shouted with such hatred. Despite her long history with the elder Kuroshima, she felt a cold knot of dislike growing in the pit of her stomach.

Setsuna sighed. _What does this family have against me? I don't remember either of them!_ Clearing her throat first, Setsuna spoke out. "If you don't want me here, I'm sure we can find another shop to suit our needs." She ferverently hoped the women wouldn't see through the bluff, as they really didn't have any other options.

A snarl formed on Kuroshima's lips, and her daughter took an unconscious step backwards. "There's no need for that, I assure you." She forced herself to bow stiffly and stepped to the side, motioning the two into the door she'd entered through. Walking quickly, Setsuna strode through and into the hallway, her Kono-chan securely at her side.

_I REALLY don't like this._ She narrowed her eyes. _Surely there's someone else who could supply A3's uniform..._ A thought occurred to her. _If the headmaster personally knows every mage in the area, he knows about this woman. He could have at least warned us._ She clenched her fist by Yuunagi's hilt. _I've got some questions for him..._

Kuroshima motioned sharply for her daughter and turned toward her reluctant customers. "Lock the door and get the measuring tape." Her command hung in the air as the door rattled closed.

Kumiko sighed, her shoulders slumping. "Yes, mother." Her voice lacked the strength she'd displayed before her old friend.

"Please stand on that platform, Konoka-ojousama." Kuroshima had managed to take control of her voice again. Setsuna found the new dulcet tones to be just as unnerving as her un-guarded hatred.

Konoka looked up at Setsuna as if seeking permission. Setsuna nodded and after a quick glance to see that no-one was watching, kissed her nose and ventured a smile, the light blush on her cheeks coercing a giggle from the marginally younger girl. Somewhat reassured, she stepped up onto the platform, setting her slippers, gratefully, at the edge.

The room they now stood in was probably half the size of the main room, not figuring in its lower ceiling. Outfits hung on the walls, most of which appeared to be uniforms or rather expensive suits, although the occasional kimono brought a splash of tradition to the display. Setsuna noticed the Mahora series of uniforms on display at one edge of the room.

Kuroshima busied herself poking through drawers in the back, pulling things whose purpose Konoka, even from her vantage point, was unable to discern. then throwing them back in. With a mumbled exclamation, she pulled a cloth sphere from the drawer. In it were probably several hundred small gleaming needles.

"Excuse me." Setsuna jumped and nearly drew her sword before recognizing the voice. A wry thought traversed her mind in the fraction of a second that she hesitated. _Maybe I can just come _close_ to hitting her..._ The image of Yuunagi's blade pressed against the girl's neck shocked Setsuna with its agreeability. Her grip tightened on Yuunagi, the only expression of anger, both at herself and Kumiko, that she would allow. Reluctantly, she stepped out of the way. _What's wrong with me? I shouldn't want to KILL the girl..._

Kumiko shot her a glare to match the snarl, though her previous fire was absent, before brushing past her. Setsuna pondered the difference in her attitude, then shrugged it off and leaned against the doorframe.

Kuroshima stepped up to the platform, the thing of pins clasped firmly in her mouth. "Please step a little closer, Konoka-ojousama." Her hands beckoned her with a snapping motion, and rather reluctantly, Konoka stepped within reach of her. The woman snatched the measuring tape from her daughter and wrapped it around her young customer's waist, her hands manipulating the strip of a measuring instrument with practiced ease. She sighed. "Please undress, Konoka-ojousama."

Simultaneously, the couple opened their mouths, a loud "WHAT?" echoing throughout the room. For the first time, Konoka's face was as red as her beloved's, nearly generating heat enough to negate the use of a furnace. "B-but...right here?" Her nervous gaze flicked to Setsuna, who was staring at the floor, crimson faced, back tot he seamstress, who nodded impatiently. "Is that really necessary? I mean...the fit doesn't have to be perfect, does it?"

A small smile crept across Kuroshima's face. _This should be interesting..._ She nodded. "Yes, it is quite necessary. If it's not perfect, you will look bad at...wherever you're going. What uniforms do you need, exactly?"

Still under some shock, neither of the girls answered, so Kumiko finally piped up and informed her mother that they would all three be attending the same school. A note of disdain in her voice, the girl's mother continued, "Ah, of course. Exactly what one would expect of Kono-ojousama. But her..." She cast her gaze at the swordswoman for an instant, then shrugged. "Regardless, I need you to strip."

Something of an "eep" issued from the chocolate haired girl, and Setsuna stepped forward, inwardly trying to quell her blush. "Um...should I step outside for a bit?"

"Oh no, that's not necessary." Although Setsuna figured her smile and tone were meant to seem kind, sadistic seemed a more accurate description. "Besides, we're all women here. No harm."

Kuroshima was hard put to contain her chuckle when the half-demon's face reached a darker tint. Setsuna muttered something unintelligible and stepped back to the wall, her face tilted down and to the left, using her bangs as a shield of sorts.

The seamstress returned her attention to Konoka. "I'm afraid I have appointments in the future, so if you would please undress..." A note of impatience broke her control of her voice.

"O-okay..." Konoka's soft voice was more subdued than usual. With a defeated sigh, she pulled her shirt over her head. She shivered when the cold air suddenly hit her now dark red skin. She was quite thankful she had chosen a plain white bra that morning. She hesitated, looking back at Kuroshima who motioned her on with a bland expression.

Across the room, Setsuna fought one of her toughest battles to date. _I CAN'T look! It's not proper!_ she all but screamed to herself. She had thought she could control herself, but the rustle of clothing and Konoka's innocent gasp from the cold threatened to destroy her tenuous control. She squirmed in place, clamping her eyes shut, trying to divert her thoughts by concentrating on the next series of katas, or forms, that she was to learn as a student of Shinmeiryuu.

The sound of a zipper following the path created for it caused, against her conscious permission, Setsuna's eyes to open, focusing on the pattern of the hard wood floor. Her gaze drifted to the right, and to varying degrees of glee and self-loathing, she found that her bangs did not sufficiently block her view. Her heart beat quickened as she saw, quite clearly, the girl she loved nervously work her skirt down off her hips and, bending over, step out of it. The thought _I should NOT be doing this!_ blared like a fog horn in the swordswoman's mind as her dark eyes traversed the mages long legs, starting at her feet, and making their way up to the cotton covered curve that was her rear.

A warmth began to disperse through her body that was not an effect of her monstrous blush as she allowed her wandering eyes to memorize every detail before her, all the while chastising herself for ogling the girl she loved. After several long moments, she managed to tear her gaze from the perfection embodied in her field of vision, a scowl darkened her face. _Dammit! It's not right to stare at her like that!_ She repressed an urge to kick the wall, as that would surely have had an extra charge tacked onto their bill. _She's not a...a...a thing to be stared at for pleasure!_ She blushed as she realized that was exactly the reason she'd been doing so.

It was only logical that seeing her love in such a state of undress would excite her, but to Setsuna it was a mark of failure. Failure to be better than the rest, failure to take control over her raw emotion, even one so powerful as lust. She cringed. _Lust...how pathetic...I don't lust after her, I love her!_ She trembled slightly from the inner conflict. Hitting the wall, she felt, would have greatly eased her mood.

Despite her best efforts, her gaze flicked back to Konoka's angelic form. The tension that had been building within her eased then redoubled in strength. Forcing her body to do so, she turned towards the wall, her back to Konoka. A cold, yet familiar, feeling of defeat and self-loathing replaced the pleasant warmth that she'd generated from her rare glimpse of her Kono-chan's body. Had she described herself, she would have used the word "scum," hatred dripping from her voice as she said it. _Konoka deserves better than some..._ she cringed again_ pervert._

Kumiko observed the half-demon with something of a grin, enjoying what she thought was mere embarrassment. She turned her bemused gaze on her past friend and smiled appreciatively. _I don't blame her, really. Konoka _is_ pretty cute._ With a jump, she wrote down the number her mother shouted on a small, ever-present notebook. The process of measurement taking and recording proceeded for nearly ten minutes. Setsuna managed to stay her course and didn't again look back to the girl on the platform. For the most part, Konoka avoided looking at Setsuna, afraid she might meet her gaze. Curiosity got the best of her, and she looked over her shoulder.

A pained look traversed her face when she saw that her Secchan was ignoring her so completely. Out of reflex, she started to reach out for her, opening her mouth to say something when Kuroshima firmly pulled her arm back down to measure the width of her shoulders. _Secchan..._ She rubbed her left shin against the back of her other leg uncomfortably. _Is...there something wrong?_

She had never had reason to doubt her looks before, as she had never particularly cared. She had, of course, always been complimented on her looks, usually by people of some import, but they were the sort that made it difficult to discern how genuine the person was. Even more self-consciously than before, she hugged herself tightly, covering her breasts in a renewed burst of modesty. _What if...Secchan doesn't like the way I look..._ A little voice in the back of her mind berated her for thinking she could be so shallow, her sudden illogical, but not misplaced, worry drowned it out. "Secchan..."

Kuroshima looked up at her customer, followed her gaze and glared, remembering she'd soon be fitting that girl as well. _Oh how the mighty have fallen that I would be serving one like _her. She stepped back, and with a snap of her tape, drew both Konoka's and Kumiko's attention. "Show me those numbers, Kumiko." She took the pad from her daughter, not showing a sign of gratitude in return. "Hmm..." She looked the measurements, then Konoka over with a cursory eye. "I think we may have a few A3 uniforms close enough to these specifications that we can alter them right here..."

She looked back at Setsuna, an unreadable expression on her face, then at what was apparently a work room. She jerked her thumb towards it. "Kumiko." Her daughter looked up. "Come. With both of us, we'll get it done quicker." The woman whose hair was just starting to gray sat her measuring tape at he edge of the platform and all but stalked towards the doorway, her daughter tagging along close at hand.

For several seconds, Konoka stared after them, waiting, for her girlfriend's sake, until they were out of presumed ear-shot. When she was satisfied, she turned hesitantly back to her silent protectress. "Secchan?"

No reply came, though the raven-haired girl shifted her weight uncomfortably. A worried frown creased her brow and she bent over to retrieve her clothes. Taking as little time as possible, she slipped back into her skirt and top, then stepped back down into her uncomfortably large slippers. She stepped quietly up to Setsuna, and with only a moment's hesitation, tapped her shoulder. "Secchan?"

"Yes?" Her voice was unreadable and she didn't turn to look at her. Konoka moved a little to the side, hoping to catch her eye, but Setsuna only turned away. The mage bit her lower lip worriedly and rested her hand on her love's shoulder.

"Secchan, what's wrong? Did...did I do something?" Konoka felt Setsuna tense up, and berated herself for not getting to the point. After several seconds of worrisome silence, Setsuna replied.

"No, you didn't do anything." She made a noise as if she was unsure of how to continue. "As usual, the flaw lies in me."

Konoka blinked, now rather thoroughly confused. "What?" With gentle hands, she turned her girlfriend around to face her, though she did not meet her eyes. "I don't understand..."

Sighing, Setsuna gestured vaguely at the platform Konoka had been standing atop earlier. "When you were up there," she choked a bit and blushed, despite the gravity of the situation, "in a particular state of undress, I..." she trailed off, her girlfriend cringed at he amount of shame evident in the swordswoman's voice. "I was practically staring; like some kind of dammed pervert." Her voice rose with her own anger, enough to make Konoka flinch away from her.

Setsuna's love whimpered and clasped her hands before her chest, finally seeing what was worrying her. She reached out and gently lifted Setsuna's chin, their dark eyes finally meeting. Konoka smiled upon seeing the tumultuous emotions. "I'm sorry..."

_Secchan..._ Konoka couldn't help but laugh. _Secchan...you're just too perfect..._ It dawned on her once again precisely how lucky she was to have found such an example of perfection. One who cared about her so much that she had blinded herself to logic. One who's love for her transcended the pursuit of her own happiness. Still giggling, she stood for an instant on her tip-toes and kissed her angel. Although brief, the contact left both their lips burning.

Konoka stepped back slightly, blushing when she normally wouldn't've. "Secchan...I...um..." She averted her gaze from that of the infinitely confused girl before her, surprised at how difficult it was to say what she wanted. "I'm...glad that you were...were watching me." She coughed discretely.

_What?_ Setsuna mind ground to a halt at this revelation. _That...doesn't make sense..._ Hesitantly, she raised her hand in something of a halting motion. "I think I missed something."

Trying to alleviate her own embarrassment, Konoka laughed nervously and finally met Setsuna's gaze. "It...it feels good to know that you like...the way I look. I'm happy, Secchan."

Setsuna's face remained blank as she processed this, weighing the likelihood of such a thing with the current situation. She managed to clear her eyes of emotion and gazed hard at Konoka, needing to know the truth for her own well being. "Really?"

The girl grinned and nodded. "Of course." She stepped closer to her. "It's nice to know that you think I'm pretty enough to stare at."

For a few seconds, Setsuna only blushed, and Konoka thought she had perhaps figured the situation wrong. A moment later she knew she was correct. Setsuna swept her up in a tight hug, holding her against her possessively and placed a kiss on her forehead, then nuzzled the top of her head, breathing deeply of her scent. "You're absolutely beautiful, Kono-chan. 'Pretty' doesn't even begin to describe you," she murmured into her hair.

Konoka opened her mouth to reply, but stopped suddenly. Setsuna's head rose from atop her own, she felt her chest tighten, and then felt an odd emptiness as Setsuna was no longer in her arms. Before she quite knew what had happened she heard the sliding door rattle closed. She turned to see Kuroshima standing in the doorway to the room, her face holding a surprised look, and it was with a flash of worry that she realized Setsuna had fled. _Oh no..._

She turned around, pushing any thoughts of Kuroshima, Kumiko, or uniforms out of her mind. Quickly she pulled the door open. "Secchan!" she called into the hallway. At the other end she saw the tail end of Yuunagi's sheath pass through the doorway before the other door closed. "Please wait!" She took off into the hallway, her slippers slapping loudly on the polished floor.

Konoka slowed as she reached the door, a little afraid that Setsuna had already left he store. She was an extremely fast runner. Taking a deep, hesitant breath, she pushed the door open and stuck her head into the main area. "Secchan?"

"Sorry, Kono-chan." The Konoe heir nearly fell through the nearby paper wall. Not three inches from her was the sheepish face of Sakurazaki Setsuna. "I'm still not used to being so..." her cheeks colored over a bit when she could think of only one word, "intimate in public."

With a smile, Konoka waved off the apology. "Don't worry about it, Secchan." She giggled again. "It's cute."

Before Setsuna could protest, the voice that was starting to get on even Konoka's nerves again broke into their peaceful reverie. "Excuse me, but I believe I mentioned that I am on a set schedule..." A note of disgust was present in her voice, and there was clearly no effort made to mask it.

Konoka noted her girlfriend's fist clench and her jaw tighten and this time found herself in complete agreement. From birth, however, a very caring and diplomatic set of manners had been presented to her, and she knew it was best to apologize and move on with the process. "Yes, of course, Kuroshima-san." She nodded and took Setsuna's hand, brushing past the older woman into the hallway.

When all four of them were once again gathered in the room, Kuroshima presented Konoka with three boxes, each containing one uniform. "For each of you," she pointedly did not look at the hanyou, "the price is ¥12,000."

"You'll get your money once you've finished with Secchan."

Setsuna blushed. _How...defiant sounding of her._ She smiled a bit, happy that the woman's inexplicable hatred for her was getting on Konoka's nerves, invoking a definite reaction.

Konoka smiled in some satisfaction when she saw Kuroshima's eye twitch. She knew she couldn't refute it. "Of course, Konoka-ojousama." She sat the boxes on the edge of the platform and gritted her teeth. "Sakurazaki-sama, if you would." Her arm, taut with apparently tremendous effort, motioned the swordswoman toward the platform.

The daughter of Konoe Eishun bit back a vehement retort, noting the acid in Kuroshima's tone. _What does she have against Secchan?_ Tears began to well up at the edges of her eyes at the unfairness of it all.. She blinked them away, somewhat confused by her own change of moods. _Why is it suddenly bothering me so much now?_ Even more on her mind was why it didn't bother her earlier. _This is not the time or place._ She shook her head and walked to where Setsuna had been standing.

As they passed each other, Setsuna saw conflict as strong and confusing as her own had been in the eyes of her love. She sighed. _If it's not one of us, it's the other... _Her instinct was to comfort the girl who held her heart, but it would be best to simply wait until they were out of the accursed shop. Rather than torture herself with thoughts of Konoka's pain, she turned her thoughts to her own.

She stepped up onto the platform and crossed to the center, though she still hung back from the seamstress. Now that she was closer, she saw that the familial resemblance between the elder Kuroshima and her daughter was actually rather stronger than she'd initially thought. They both wore their brown hair long, longer than Konoka's, though Kumiko's mother's was graying prematurely at the edges, giving her something of a distinguished look. Neither were particularly tall nor especially short, Setsuna coming just to Kuroshima's nose. The largest difference was in their eyes. Both were an auburn hue, though Kumiko's shone with youthful vigor and naiveté while her mother's were dull and cold, seeming to reflect her view of the world.

"Please undress, Sakurazaki-sama." Doing her best not to blush and failing miserably, Setsuna unbuttoned her shirt and shrugged it off. In contrast to Konoka's plain white underclothes, Setsuna had chosen a black bra and, as yet unseen, black underwear. It was with great reluctance that she slipped out of the rest of her clothes. She rubbed her left arm self-consciously, feeling all eyes in the room on her.

The elevated girl looked over nervously at Konoka, nearly falling to the floor as all her blood rushed to the surface of her skin and out of her extremities. The innocent looking girl's dark eyes were watching her intently, seeming to drink in the sight. _Wow...she's right. It does feel kinda nice to be looked at. By her, anyway._ Following Konoka's gaze, she raised an eyebrow and better covered her lower body with her left hand. That warm feeling began to well up within her once more.

"Sakurazaki-sama!" Setsuna's gaze snapped back to Kuroshima. Judging by her tone, it was not the first time she'd attempted to get her attention. "Would you **please** step closer?" It was not a question.

With a grimace, the swordswoman did so reluctantly. She stood, unmoving, as the woman wrapped the tape around her waist. She withheld a yelp when Kuroshima purposefully tightened the tape, its plastic edge biting into her skin painfully. She clamped her mouth shut, not wanting to further bother Konoka with the apparent grudge harbored for her by the older woman.

As she had done before, she called out Setsuna's measurements, some of which she wasn't fond of, to Kumiko, who recorded them. Setsuna's eyes glared holes through the top of Kumiko's head when she giggled at one in particular. For fifteen long minutes, Setsuna squirmed about, becoming increasingly angry at the vindictive woman who seemed intent on inflicting as much discomfort on her as possible.

Her back to the wall, Konoka gazed contentedly at Setsuna, her anger starting to drain away. _Black is her color..._ She flushed visibly, both at her thoughts and at a particularly suggestive accidental jerk on Setsuna's part. The same warmth that had the hanyou so fascinated had taken shelter in Konoka, who knew the feeling better, as well. She half closed her eyes and settled back against the wall to wait.

Setsuna yelped and Konoka was drawn from what had become wandering thoughts back to the store. To a pang of disappointment, she saw that Setsuna now wore the azure skirt of A3, her arms out to the side while Kuroshima knelt before her, using pins to adjust the waist of the article. Her eyes caught her girlfriend's, and she saw her flick her gaze down to the top of the seamstress' head and clench her hand into a fist. Konoka wanted both to chuckle and shake her head in sympathy. Although both of them were superseded by the urge to run up and hug her, probably induced by the unanswered warmth that she felt upon seeing her Secchan. Had she thought about it, she might have decided lust as powerful, or more so, than Setsuna's previous lust, was shameful and a sign of weakness as the swordswoman had done. She chose, though, simply to enjoy the pleasant tingle.

As the actual fitting process progressed, Setsuna got steadily angrier. It was obvious, to her at least, taht Kuroshima was taking great pleasure in "misjudging" the length of the pins, inflicting many a minor stab on the quiet girl. _Her daughter had better be on damn good behavior over the school year or she may end up with no-one to watch the counter during summer break..._ She took a deep breath and calmed herself. _What is it about me that she dislikes so much? _For the life of her, she couldn't **remember **the woman, let alone know what she'd done in the past to anger her.

It was quite a frustrating position, but all she could do was resign herself to the position of pincushion and mannequin until the sado-masochist was finished. Several times she noticed Konoka's appreciative gaze on her, brightening both her mood and her face. After accruing nearly fifty tiny injuries, Kuroshima stood, pin cushion still in her mouth, and proclaimed the uniform complete. Setsuna looked down at herself and was surprised by how much she liked the change of uniform. The dominant color was a deep azure. The buttons along the front of the coat were silver, as was the scrawling trim along the cuffs and the hem of the skirt. The now familiar emblem of A3 was emblazoned on the left breast pocket and the right sleeve.

The material, Setsuna noticed, was exceedingly light but very comfortable. It had a curious shine even under the store's fluorescent lighting. She spun a little bit, frowning when the skirt billowed more than the heavier material of Mahora's uniform had allowed. Only a mangaka would create clothes so flimsy...she sighed. Although the thought that Konoka would be wearing the same thing helped to better her opinion of the new accoutrements.

"Take it off carefully and give the uniform to me." Not wanting to undergo the fitting process again, Setsuna took an agonizingly long time disrobing, bringing her blush back to its former luster very quickly. Thus it was seemingly instantaneous that she was back in her normal clothes and standing beside Konoka, Yuunagi now at her back.

Handing the uniform to Kumiko, Kuroshima ordered her to finalize it, and replicate it for two more. "The process," she informed the couple, "will take nearly half an hour." In response to Konoka's question of what they could do until then, Kuroshima grudgingly led them to an even smaller room, in which a traditional style table stood. Konoka and Setsuna sat down along one side, the swordswoman quickly abandoning seiza. As she sat back and crossed her legs in front of her, her knee briefly brushed against Konoka's. The contact sent sparks from her skin to the core of her body, despite the touch's simplicity, and she flushed, instead opting to stretch her legs out under the table.

Kuroshima bustled about, preparing green tea as was something of an old custom. A palpable silence fell, and Setsuna found herself resenting the older woman's presence yet more. She looked sideways at Konoka and caught the other girl doing the same. They both blushed and turned away from each other, and Setsuna found herself marveling at the difference in their behavior as compared to that morning. There was a new feeling of giddiness, of elation, that hadn't been as pronounced earlier.

Setsuna couldn't help the broad smile that crossed her face. The powerful new emotion, she decided, was one she didn't wish to be without. With a glance at Kuroshima's back, she silently leaned over and placed a kiss, so soft and quick that it's happening seemed questionable, on Konoka's cheek. The chocolate haired girl raised a hand to the cheek in surprised and turned to look at Setsuna. Rather than look away, the swordswoman met her eyes, feeling her face light up, although she wasn't sure why.

With a grin, Setsuna turned back to face the table properly, readjusting Yuunagi and the bags of school supplies. Konoka watched her love, quite contented despite the earlier happenings of the day. It was with a great reluctance that she removed her soft gaze from the form of the hanyou to accept the mug of hot tea from the seamstress. "Thank you, Kuroshima-san." She did not specify, however, what she was thanking her for.

With a grunt, Kuroshima Kumiko pulled a third Asian Academy of the Arcane uniform from a stack of thirty or forty. "Those two really are close..." Since starting to fit Konoka, Kumiko had instantly picked up on the silent communication between the two. The sort of communication shared only by people as close to each other in mind and heart as they were in body.

Their relationship was most confusing to the young girl. The first and most vehement thing she had against it was the Sakurazaki girl herself. The hanyou may not have known Kumiko, but Kumiko knew her. The majority of the staff, Kuroshima Yumi, her mother, included, were informed of the arrival of their charge's newest bodyguard to be. The reaction had been mixed, but when the master of the house, Konoe Eishun, commanded, his will was done. Kumiko had been with her mother when they were informed, clinging to the wide leg of her hakama. At the time she'd only known there'd be another little girl around, although she could tell there was supposedly something different about her from the way the adults had acted.

"Mommy, why don't you like Sakurazaki-san? I thought you hadn't even met her yet," she asked that night while her mother was preparing their simple supper that evening.

The youthful woman withheld her response until she was sitting down as well, their bowls of rice, miso soup, and plates of tonkatsu arrayed before them. She had steepled her fingers, elbows on the table, and fixed her daughter with a serious gaze. "Sakurazaki-san is a hanyou; she's half demon." She gave this several seconds to sink in, but the significance didn't seem to dawn on the young girl. She sighed. "One of her parents was not human. One of her parents was a monster. A monster that Konoe-sama," her eyes brightened at this, "fought bravely against in the war."

Kumiko had drawn in a breath of surprise at that. "A monster!" she'd nearly shrieked, fear evident in both her eyes and voice. She clasped her hands in her lap and watched her mother intently, hoping she'd continue.

The elder Kuroshima picked up her amber colored chopsticks, holding them easily. "The girl's blood is forever stained with the black blood of an unholy being, and yet the Shinmeiryuu see fit to trust Konoe-sama's daughter to her." She absently swirled her chopsticks about in the salty soup before her. "Of course, I've always had my suspicions about how genuine the Shinmeiryuu are in their agreement with Konoe-sama..."

At this point, Kumiko had turned tuned her mother out, more than used to her political rants, and focused on her own thoughts. She'd only met the Konoe heir once, not long after she and her mother had come to the Konoe household. She seemed like a nice person, though a little too cheerful for Kumiko's tastes. A sense of pity had weighed on her when she thought of the poor girl being subjected to the presence of a monster.

Kumiko sipped at her miso soup, contemplating the girl's less than enviable position. _I wonder if she knows that Sakurazaki-san's a monster..._ She shook her head and started in on the rice. _I wonder what she looks like. Does she LOOK like a monster?_ She chewed thoughtfully and vowed to find out.

On the day the Shinmeiryuu girl had arrived, Kumiko had been nearby, watching in wide-eyed anticipation for fangs and claws, but was disappointed when she turned out to be merely another girl, although she had an odd way of exuding strength, possibly because of her training, or perhaps her heritage.

Kumiko returned from her memories upon accidentally pricking her finger in her inattentiveness. She focused more clearly on her task and original train of thought. The first thing she found un-plumb-able about the relationship was the hanyou herself, and the second was basically the same.

Sakurazaki Setsuna was a girl, as was Konoe Konoka. Kumiko knew such relationships existed, of course, but she'd never really given them much thought other than, "Wow, really? Weird." It surprised, nearly shocked, her that the highborn heir of both the Kansai and Kantou Magic Associations would be that way. Normally, people of power or assured power deviated from the current concept of normal as little as possible in order to maintain their reputation with the majority of the public. Konoka was either extremely courageous, knew nothing of the power and responsibility in her future, or didn't care.

On a different level entirely, Kumiko didn't really have a problem with Konoka's preference to girls, although it was a little disconcerting to think that the girl she'd palled around with some when they were younger could have been thinking about and evaluating her as a possible consort. She dismissed the though with a snort. Who considered such things at that age in the first place?

After a moment's consideration, she placed all thoughts of Konoka's relationship, its ramifications, and Sakurazaki Setsuna out of her mind. She truly hoped to be befriend the girl once more, and being leery of her "checking her out," for lack of a better term, would only impede that. Her mood brightening, she took to humming softly as she modified the skirt before her.

The thirty minutes that the couple waited passed quickly enough. Fishing for a reason behind her hatred, Setsuna attempted conversation with the stoic woman. Granted, conversation was not her strong point, but even trying her best, Setsuna managed to only pry vague short answers from her. Most of the questions dealt with her employment by the Konoe household and her connections to Konoka, who, realizing what Setsuna was doing, remained silent throughout.

Setsuna sighed, not willing to admit defeat but seeing no other alternative, she sat back, somewhat bracing herself with her hands. _The woman's locked up tighter than a steel drum._ She chuckled. _I wonder if she's some kind of spy or something._ With a wry grin, she didn't totally dismiss the thought. Anything seemed possible with this woman.

Silence fell, and Konoka sipped at the cold dregs of her tea, the green powder having separated from the once hot water. She made a face and slid it towards the middle of the table. Kuroshima Yumi narrowed her eyes at the gesture of dislike but remained silent. All got quiet once again, and under the seamstress' glare, Konoka scooted closer to Setsuna slightly.

For several moments, the only noise was that of their breath, Setsuna's perfectly regulated, Konoka's somewhat shallower than normal, and Kuroshima's slightly quickened, perhaps in suppressed anger. After a time, a shadow appeared in the wooden doorway, her gaze seeking that of her mother's. "They're done." She held up a stack of three boxes indistinguishable from those presented to the chocolate haired girl earlier.

"About time." As the older woman stood, Konoka cringed in sympathy of the harsh words. "Are you certain they're to the specifications?"

Kumiko resisted the urge to roll her yes, knowing it would end badly for her if she did. "Yes, mother, I'm sure. I measured twice before stitching, then once afterward, just as you've stressed."

Rounding the table, Yumi took the boxes from her and strode into the other room. With a glance between the three of them, Setsuna stood, helping Konoka to her feet, then the couple followed Kumiko into the other room with her mother.

Kuroshima abruptly appeared before Setsuna, two large plastic bags in her hands. "Here are your purchases." She pressed them into Setsuna's single free hand. She recoiled slightly when her fingers brushed the hanyou's hand. Recovering her neutral expression instantly, she turned to Konoka. "Your total is ¥24,300, Konoe-sama."

The young mage blinked several times and remained silent for a moment at her forwardness. Even if she didn't always like it, she was usually shown a higher level of respect than most others, and Kuroshima Yumi's nearly brusque behavior gave her cause to pause. "Um..." she blinked and returned to her normal self, "okay, Kuroshima-san."

She pulled her wad of money from her shirt pocket, stifling a grin when the older woman's eyes widened, probably in jealousy. With a delicious deliberateness, she counted through the bills, starting at the largest first to underline her position above Kuroshima. She figured taking pleasure in doing so was a character fallacy, but in light of the injustices done Setsuna, it seemed permissible. "Here you are, Kuroshima-san." Smiling brightly, Konoka handed the several bills and few coins to Kuroshima who clasped them tightly.

"Thank you for your patronage." In that instance, her entire demeanor shifted. It was as if the couple was no longer present; her business was done. She spun on her heel, tucking the payment into a pocket in her business slacks. Kumiko looked between the three of them again and decided it was probably best to do as her mother did for the most part. She didn't want to be totally cold though. She smiled at the young mage, "See ya soon, Konoka!"

Slipping her remaining money to safety, Konoka grinned back at her, "I can't wait!" With a brisk wave, she quickly crossed the room to where her now recomposed companion held the door open for her. She smiled at Setsuna in thanks as she passed, getting an extremely short bow in response.

Setsuna decided to try, for Konoka's sake, politeness once more. "Goodbye." Kumiko paused in her cleaning but did not turn to face her, and Yumi ignored her entirely. With a shrug, she stepped into the hallway and slid the door closed.

Kuroshima stopped in the middle of moving a box and looked up in realization. "Kumiko, go unlock the door."

"Oh!" She put down the broom she'd picked up but seconds before. "Sure thing, mother." In truth, she was glad to have the chance to speak to her old friend without the over-bearing presence of her mother. With an obvious bounce in her step, she left the room hurriedly.

When she was sure she was gone, Kuroshima Yumi lowered herself to the edge of the raised platform, her eyes trained on the door. "Odd that such a perfect chance would present itself just when I had resigned myself to a world without Eishun-sama...I finally have a way to get to him." In an odd way, she was glad that Konoka had made herself known.

Using her to get to Eishun was ironic. The young girl embodied all that Yumi despised. Her face was hauntingly similar to Konoe Michiko, the woman who had, even in death, kept the head of the Kansai Magic Association beyond her grasp.

Yumi clenched her fist and looked down at the floor. There was much to plan if she were to both destroy the Konoe child and draw Eishun to herself.

_Footnotes:_

_Hanyou – Literally, half-demon._

_Meiji era –Time period directly after the beginning of mass-Westernization. Started in the 1880s._

_Mangaka – A manga (Japanese comic) artist_

_Hakama – The traditional pants worn by many different people._

_Tonkatsu –Breaded pork generally served over rice._

_Shinmeiryuu – A secretive sword school from the mountains of Kyoto, it's the style that Setsuna practices._


	3. First Impressions

**_Disclaimer: Shinmeiryuu and organic computers that can shoot laser beams from their eyes? We're not that stupid. They can have Negima and Onegai Teacher ((shudder))._**

_ChibiSecchan: As you can see from the disclaimer, we're adding a brand new series just to torture our favorite couple more!_

_OkashiraShinomori: ((Grins and nods happily.)) This is just the first of many tortu-...series we'll be adding._

_ChibiSecchan: ((Shakes head)) Now you're reminding me about all those Aerial Aces I've endured..._

_OkashiraShinomori: There've been a lot of them, hasn't there? ((Sighs.)) Sadly they won't see the fruits of THAT pain for a few more chapters._

_ChibiSecchan: But still, we're adding a very interesting extra element in this chapter. I reckon Negima fans who're also GBA-gamers will enjoy it._

_OkashiraShinomori: ((Laughs.)) I'd totally forgotten about that part. Yes, I think they'll recognize it, and I hope they'll appreciate it._

_**Gradual Changes Book 1 - Newer Bits of Life**_

**_Chapter 03 First Impressions_**

_**By OkashiraShinomori and ChibiSecchan**_

_**Beta Reading by Spiritmage and Shinmeiryuu**_

"**Noh. Nonoh noh." – The Phantom Prech Thief**

"Oh, cheer up already, Konoka." Kagurazaka Asuna shook her head in an exasperated manner. For the past three days, Konoka's mood had been at two exclusive extremes; overjoyed and bubbly or depressed and sluggish. Today, the day her and Setsuna's boat for Syran Island launched, was the latter.

Her dark haired friend responded with a weak attempt at a grin and a nod, immediately looking back at her feet and dropping the pretense of a smile. She sighed in a world weary manner, although the light touch of her girlfriend's hand to her shoulder helped a little bit. _This is it...the last time I'll see Asuna, Negi-kun, Eva-chan, and everyone else for a long time..._ She sniffled and rubbed at her eyes, hoping to get rid of the tears, once more, before they actually started.

Seeing Konoka's continued distress, Asuna shrugged with a sigh and shook her head as if to say "I give up." The group of four continued to walk slowly down the sparsely crowded street, surrounded in something of a foreboding silence. Despite her strong front, Asuna too was significantly feeling the imminent loss of one of her closest friends.

It wasn't until the night previous that Konoka had actually explained, with the randomly interjected help of Sakurazaki Setsuna, why her mood had been so unusual as of late. Asuna and Negi's initial reactions had been rather similar, mostly feelings of great surprise. Konoka's father had been strongly against her learning magic and yet he had given his permission, and indeed his blessing, for that very thing.

Negi, after recovering from the shock, had immediately pressed the questions, as he knew quite a bit about the magic schools. Due to the Asian Academy of the Arcane's close connection to Meldiana School of Magic, the school he'd attended not long before, he actually knew more about it, they came to find, than either of the school's new students.

Although she'd had the tack not to mention it, Asuna had privately felt a little miffed that neither of her two friends had confided in her their plans before then. They'd known for quite a while, yet they'd left her in the dark. She was a little surprised that Setsuna hadn't mentioned it. Especially lately, their friendship seemed to be evolving into a good one, but apparently not good enough to warrant her being kept in the loop. Not being told by the Konoe heir had indeed hurt somewhat. She had been there when even Setsuna hadn't been, and had become one of her closest friends. To not be told such a thing was a little painful.

She couldn't bring herself to bring the subject up though, and instead held her silence while they walked. Negi beside her seemed to be in much less of a dour mood. It could be due to his age, although his maturity would have made up for that. She smiled and shook her head as he nearly tripped over a bit of upturned sidewalk, almost throwing his ermine friend from his position atop his head onto the pavement. _What an idiot..._

Grinning in embarrassment, Negi Springfield tugged the edges of his suit jacket back down into some semblance of order and realigned his staff across his back. "Are you happy to finally be on your way, Konoka-san?" His smile was intended to be infectious, but it wasn't as effective as he'd hoped.

The chocolate haired girl shifted the rather thick duffel bag she'd slung over her shoulder into a more comfortable position and nodded hesitantly. "Yeah, I guess I'm really excited." She paused. "I know I'm gonna love it, but I'm gonna miss you guys too..."

Asuna again shook her head and slapped Konoka jovially on the back, nearly knocking her over, getting her a soft glare from the swordswoman beside her. She shrugged it off and looked back at Konoka. "We'll miss you too, but don't get stuck on that, Konoka! Think about it! You're gonna be learning all kinds of magic! Stuff not even the brat here knows."

Negi pouted a little when she gestured at him, but didn't bother to say anything, sensing the slight softness in her voice. The red-headed girl nudged Konoka with her elbow and smiled. "Just think, you might even learn some teleport spells or something so you can visit whenever you want." At this, the quieter than normal girl seemed to perk up a little bit. It was logical to think that such spells existed, although she'd never really considered it before.

Setsuna nodded beside her and spoke up for the first time since they'd left the dorm nearly a half hour before. "Asuna-san has a point, Kono-chan." She adjusted her own, slightly smaller, duffel bag and moved Yuunagi to her other shoulder to allow herself to hesitantly wrap an arm around her girlfriend's shoulders, her face coloring over slightly at the public display. "And we always have our cell phones."

She held her own up as proof. The swordswoman had been waving it around somewhat the entire day, having just gotten it the night before. She wasn't the best with technology, and really hadn't had much use for a cell phone. The one she'd previously owned had been extremely simple; its screen was only able to display numbers and such in green and black, so old was it. The other three members of the Library Exploration Club had all but forced her to one of the local electronics shops and coerced her into buying a proper cell phone. Had she not been struck dumb by their generally companionable intentions, she might not have purchased it. She was not, however, unhappy that she had.

She had already taken the liberty of snapping a picture of her Kono-chan and placing it, with a little technical support, as her background. Before she'd had a chance to do much with it, it had been passed around the group consisting of the library trio, Asuna, Negi, and a few select others so they could input their numbers into the Contacts list.

Setsuna had little intention of using it for anything aside from contacting Konoka, but it was reassuring to have everyone else's numbers as well. She decided if Konoka contacted their friends, she'd speak with them, but she wouldn't go out of her way to do so. Konoka was all she needed.

The brown-haired girl eyed the phone her love was holding and nodded, seeming to brighten a little bit. "Yeah, that's true..." She looked back over at Asuna and Negi. "I'll call everyday, I promise!" She smiled at the two, who returned the gesture in kind, and straightened a little bit, looking ahead rather than at her feet. _At the very least, I can still hear their voices and know what's going on with them. And as long as I have Secchan with me, I'll be okay._ Although it was still present, the worry that she would be forgotten, and even that she would forget her friends was a little weaker. She took advantage of its momentary weakness to shove it to the side of her thoughts.

"So, Negi-kun, are you going to use my bunk now, or are you still gonna sleep with Asuna?" She giggled to herself when the both of them turned a light shade of pink and neither answered until Asuna elbowed the smaller boy sharply in the ribs.

"I, er, yeah, I think I'm gonna start using your bunk, Konoka-san. It'll be empty and all, so it'd be weird not to use it..." He didn't meet any of the three girls' gazes and had a strong urge to smack the chortling ermine from his shoulder. Despite there being nothing between them, the subject still made the both of them a little embarrassed.

"Of course you're using the other bunk, brat!" Asuna raised her hand as if to hit him, but dropped it and made a frustrated kind of growl. "I can finally stop sharing my bed with a little midget who undresses me in his sleep," she exclaimed, although in an odd kind of hushed voice, if such were possible.

While Negi cowered from both Asuna's overbearing glare and Chamo's nearly raucous laughter, Konoka giggled quietly and looped an arm through Setsuna's. "I'm gonna miss them, Secchan..." she stated quietly as she laid her head on Setsuna's shoulder.

Her girlfriend blushed and slipped her cell phone back into her pocket before patting Konoka's hand reassuringly. "I will too, Kono-chan." She looked up at the cloudy sky and, surprising herself, sighed wistfully. "It's gonna be quite a while before I see Tatsumiya again."

With a sly grin, Konoka looked up at Setsuna. "Have you ever paid off your tab to Tatsumiya-san?" She giggled again as the swordswoman's dark eyes widened to nearly one and a half times their normal size and her mouth twitched a little before forming a small grin. She turned her head to look at the young healer.

"Oops?" She and Konoka both laughed at the simple statement, imaging the gunner's face when she realized a rather substantial sum of money was preparing to board a boat to a location she was forbidden from following to. The other three dropped their façades of violence and cowering to cast an inquiring gaze at the couple.

"Did we miss something," Negi asked Asuna in a hushed voice, not wanting to interrupt them.

"Looks like it, Aniki," the snow white ermine replied in as hushed a voice he could manage. There were far too many people around for his rather piercing voice to be at normal volume. He scampered from the small English boy's shoulder to the taller red-head's, and finally landed on Konoka's duffel bag.

"Setsuna-neesan." The hanyou quieted her laughter and turned to look with some surprise at the small animal.

"Yes, Chamo-san?"

"Don't forget that you can still contact Aniki with the Pactio card's telepathy ability." He raised a paw towards her own royal blue bag, feeling the very faint aura of the Contract within it.

The two magi and the swordswoman both blushed a little, and Setsuna cast an unreadable look at the bag. "I'd forgotten about that..." The other three gathered around her quizzically as she sat her bag on the ground and unzipped it.

Chamo's gaze immediately fell on the assortment of undergarments at one end of the bag, but Setsuna's rifling quickly covered them with other clothes, much to his disappointment. "Aha." She stood back up and held a card before her. "Yes, here it is."

Negi cocked his head thoughtfully, gazing at the card. "Chamo-kun, wouldn't it be best if we cancelled the Contracts?" He looked down at the ermine expectantly, and one could nearly see the gears turning in his head.

The little animal blinked in disbelief. "Why would you want to do that, Aniki?" His voice grew higher in pitch at the thought of the Contract's loss.

"What if Setsuna-san and Konoka-san were to get in trouble at their new school for having established Contracts already? That may be something they wish to govern. I know they were pretty strict about it at Meldiana..." His voice was still questioning, though he was fairly certain he was right.

Although somewhat reluctantly, Setsuna nodded her agreement. "Negi-sensei may have a point, Chamo-san. I don't remember anything specific, but there was a page in the packet we received that mentioned Contracts." She looked at her girlfriend with a gaze that asked if she had anything to add, but the chocolate-haired girl shrugged and shook her head. "I think it would be best if they were canceled, just in case."

The ermine was silent for a scant few seconds, then grinned in what would be a lecherous look if he were human. "So do you and Konoka-neesan plan to form a Contract then?" He nudged Konoka's sock with his small furry elbow and smiled suggestively.

With a strangled cry, the ermine flew through the air and into a container of burnable trash. Still a fiery shade of crimson, Setsuna placed her hand back on the strap of her duffel bag. Her aim with throwing was improving. "No, Kono-chan and I have not formed a Contract." As Chamo hauled himself from the large metal container, a bit of paper stuck to his left forepaw, Setsuna stalked over to him, holding the card before her. "Now, how do I cancel the Contract?"

"Alright, alright, I'll tell you." He picked at the piece of paper with his other paw absently as he walked back over to Negi's side. Grumbling to himself, he scampered up Negi's pant's leg and disappeared into his pocket for second, then popped back up with a bit of chalk in his paws. "Although now that I think about it, you have a point, Setsuna-neesan. It'd be really hard for Aniki to keep the connection between you sustained at that distance and not get anything in return." He looked at Konoka. "Same thing with your Contract, Konoka-neesan." He sighed at having said it. "Let's find an alley or something to do this in though."

Setsuna tucked the card into the waistband of her skirt with a nod and re-zipped her duffel bag, slinging it over her shoulder. The group of four followed the ermine into what seemed like an empty alley, Asuna at the rear to provide warning if a curious passersby would want to follow them. "Aniki, Setsuna-neesan, Konoka-neesan, please come here."

With a look between themselves, the couple stepped up beside Negi and Setsuna once more held the card out to the ermine while Konoka searched around in her bag for hers. "Aniki, I need your copy of the cards too. It's no good unless the Master Contract is canceled too."

"It's a good thing I keep them with me..." After a second's worth of rummaging, Negi pulled a card identical to the one in the swordswoman's hand out of his inner coat pocket and knelt, handing it to his self-proclaimed brother, keeping a second, different card, to himself.

After retrieving Setsuna's card as well, Chamo sat them aside and began carefully drawing a ten inch by inch circle on the pavement. Within it he drew a myriad of symbols and shapes that only Negi could fathom, and even his understanding was purely recognition. Within the symbols was a rectangle precisely the size of the cards. This was where Chamo arranged them, checking to be sure the edges were precisely arranged.

He stood back for a moment and wiped his forehead with a free paw before stepping between the lines he'd drawn back to the cards. With exact precision he drew an identical circle upon the center of the top card, replacing the very small rectangle with another symbol. The ermine dashed back outside the circle and shooed the group back from the chalk drawing, tossing his chalk to the young teacher as he did so. He muttered something that not even Negi could catch, and both of the cards in the pile flashed.

"Alright, Setsuna-neesan, Aniki, I need both of you over here." The two walked into the circle where Chamo now stood, and he handed Negi the stack of cards. "You stand here, Aniki." He motioned his "older brother" towards a particular symbol on the circle. "Setsuna-neesan, over here." Setsuna found her own symbol to look somewhat like an inverted version of Negi's.

"Now, both of you need to hold a different end of the cards with both hands." He sighed and shook his head as they held the wrong side of the cards. Sometimes it really was easier just to do things yourself. "No, the ends of the cards." They fumbled with the stack, each muttering apologies, and when Chamo was certain they were holding them correctly, standing on the right symbols, and held the cards over the blank rectangle in the middle he scampered out to stand by Konoka.

Chamo cleared his small throat and held his paws up to the air reverently. "Terminatio Pactum!" The small group of gathered friends closed their eyes as a beam of light emanated from the two stacked cards, dissolving a small hole in the clouds over them. The beam dissipated and a wave of light washed over them and out both ends of the alley before it grew dark again. As the chalk circle dissolved into wisps of smoke, the snow white ermine scurried up Negi's pant's leg to examine the cards, finding as he had hoped for their sake that they had dissolved the Contract successfully. Their backs were the same mottled brown with an image of the Pactio spell's required circle, but their faces were a pure white, much like the blank pages with Konoka's spell books.

"There you go, Aniki, Setsuna-neesan. Two blank cards and one dissolved Contract." He shook his head as the two took their respective cards, mourning the loss of the power available to his "brother" if they should encounter more trouble in the future. Their search for the Thousand Master was not over, after all. The job was only half done though.

Setsuna nodded in satisfaction and tucked the card back into her bag and stepped to the side to allow Konoka to pass her. Holding her own card tightly in one hand, the healer waited while Chamo redrew the circle, then handed it to him so he could repeate the process onto the cards. It was more impressive, Setsuna found, to watch the actual termination of the Contract from the outside as another beam of light shot into the air at Chamo's cry of "Terminatio Pactum!" She smiled unconsciously as the images were stricken from the cards, realizing that Konoka was truly not bound to anyone anymore.

The chocolate haired girl stepped out of the disappearing circle and slipped the card into one of her spell books, probably intending to use it as a bookmark. She smiled and stepped back up to Setsuna's side, slinging her bag back over her shoulder. The group strode out of the alley just as people began to investigate from the other end, searching for the source of the odd light show. Chamo quickly scurried back to the top of Asuna's head, the best vantage point, and hissed, "Let's get out of here. Too many people for me to keep talking, and especially not about you two going off to 3A."

All four nodded, again nearly sending the ermine to the pavement, and got back on track for the larger train station necessary for them to get to Hiroshima, the city their boat would launch from.

As they neared their destination, the mood became more and more oppressive as thoughts of their upcoming parting became more and more pronounced. Although it had been little more than a year since Negi had joined their little group, and not long after that Setsuna had rejoined Konoka, they had gotten closer together than most could with much more time at their disposal. Negi and Asuna made light of it for the sake of Konoka, but it did weigh heavily on them. Half of their little team would be gone. The highest station's array of radio towers came into view over the edge of a department store, and as if on cue, the entire group sighed, Setsuna included.

Through the entire process of buying their tickets, everyone was silent but for Chamo's muffled yelp as Negi caught him by his tail after he'd leapt after a group of schoolgirls heading in the opposite direction. This roused a small laugh, but little more. Konoka chewed at her lower lip as they walked down the two flights of stairs leading to the area the trains pulled up to. Luckily not many were bound for Hiroshima, and the long flat pier-like structure was relatively empty. Glancing between their tickets and the screens suspended from the ceiling, Konoka and Setsuna paved the way to their car's arrival point.

According to the nearest screen's readout, the train wasn't due for another seven minutes. Setsuna sighed. _Seven minutes more of uncomfortable silence. Great._ She looked from Negi to Asuna, then back to Asuna, and bowed. "Thank you, Negi-sensei and Asuna-san."

The young teacher and the generally violent red-head exchanged looks with each other, then bowed politely in return. "Um...what for, Setsuna-san?" Asuna questioned once they had righted themselves.

"For taking care of Kono-chan while I was...doing my duty from afar. And for being my friends in the time afterwards." She smiled genuinely at the two. "Aside from Kono-chan, you two were the first to bother to do so, and I thank you." She bowed low again, Yuunagi nearly slipping from her shoulder in the process.

Negi laughed and rubbed the back of his neck with one hand. "It was our pleasure, really, Setsuna-san. No reason to thank us." He smiled at her. "We could thank you for the same thing."

Asuna stepped closer, her face masked by a rough glare that looked oddly natural on her. "You know what'll happen if you don't take good care of Konoka, right?" She raised a fist not far before Setsuna's normally stony features threateningly.

From most, Setsuna's response would have been to draw her sword, perhaps even use it, but from Asuna it merely evoked a smile. "I don't think you have to worry about anything like that, Asuna-san. There is no-one Kono-chan would be safer with."

Behind her, Konoka smiled to herself and once again readjusted her duffel bag. _I'm so lucky..._ She stepped up closer to Setsuna and without regard to their very public location kissed the side of her neck. It wasn't long by any means, nor was it extremely obvious to anyone merely walking by, but it still turned the swordswoman's skin a shade of red to rival that of numbers glowing on the suspended screens.

"K-Kono-chan, in such a place..." Setsuna trailed off as she nervously moved her sword to her other shoulder, her eyes flicking around the area in a defensive manner.

Asuna and Negi chuckled quietly. Chamo whispered, loud enough for the others to hear, in Negi's ear, "Just imagine what'll happen without us there to stop them, Aniki."

Even Konoka turned pink, and before Chamo could comprehend his position, he was hanging by his tail from Setsuna's right hand. She held him up to her face and narrowed her eyes at his little furry face. The crimson on her cheeks seemed to dull the normally murderous look, and Albert Chamomile merely laughed at her. "So, Setsuna-neesan, it's exactly as I thought, ne?"

She stiffened at the insinuation, filed it away for further consideration in a more private location, and flung the tiny animal off the edge of the platform. "C-Chamo-kun!" Negi dashed off to the edge of the structure and knelt outside the yellow safety line.

While her teacher fished around for his unconscious familiar, Setsuna gently steered her girlfriend towards the set of lines that marked where the rear door for their car would stop. As she spied the headlight of the Shinkansen at the far end of the tracks, Setsuna waved quickly at Asuna, blinking in surprise when Konoka dropped her duffel bag and dashed past her to wrap the taller girl in a hug. "Asuna..."

As the breaks on the pristine white train hissed, Setsuna gently laid her hands on Konoka's shoulders and pulled her away from the red-head, cooing softly in her ear. The young heir rubbed the tears from her eyes and looked up at Asuna, then Negi as he returned, short of breath, with an unconscious ermine. "G-goodbye, Negi-kun, Asuna." She drew in a deep breath to steady herself, a few tears rolling down her cheeks, and waved. "I'll miss you..."

"We'll miss you too, Konoka-san!" Negi called out, standing as tall as he could and waving as she bent to pick her duffel bag back up. Asuna, still feeling the effects of the hug by way of the massive damage to her self-control didn't trust her voice and merely waved back, nodding in agreement with Negi's statement.

Setsuna stood at the edge of the door and helped Konoka, though she didn't need it, into the train car, then turned and bowed curtly again, waved, and stepped up into the interior of the Shinkansen herself.

Konoka reluctantly stepped out of the large area where passengers got on and off and into the aisle between seats in their car, her gaze on the window and her friends beyond. Setsuna guided her with a gentle hand to their seats, numbers 22A and 22B. She took her love's bag and sat it in the over-head compartment along with her own, then sat in her seat, softly pulling Konoka down into hers. Yuunagi she placed standing at her side, somewhat annoyed at how much it stood out, standing as tall as it did.

Setsuna remained silent as a man examined their tickets, merely watching Konoka watch their three friends. She laid a comforting hand on her shoulder when a voice over the loudspeaker announced their departure. She felt her girlfriend tense as the vehicle started with a small jerk, and heard her sniffle as Negi, Asuna, and Chamo began to slowly fall behind as the train picked up speed. Even several minutes after the platform was no longer in sight and the land-bound plane had reached its normal cruising speed, she kept her gaze out the window. Setsuna surmised it was to hide the tears that had doubtlessly appeared as their leaving became a reality.

"It'll be okay, Kono-chan," she ventured after several more moments of silence. "You aren't leaving them forever." She squeezed her shoulder. "We have vacations, after all."

Konoka turned to face the swordswoman, her eyes a little red and tear trails evident on her cheeks. Despite that, she smiled brightly at her and stated in a stronger voice than Setsuna had expected, "You're right, Secchan. We can come back in the summer and winter. And we can call anytime. I'm just being over-emotional."

Setsuna laughed and drew the slightly younger girl into a light hug, regardless of their surroundings. "You're not being over-emotional at all, Kono-chan. It's not everyday you have to leave three friends and your home behind for a long time." She pulled back and smiled at the girl.

"Thanks, Secchan." Konoka returned the smile, then sighed and sat back in her pleasantly padded seat. "How long is our train ride supposed to take?"

_I'm surprised I haven't already checked..._ Shaking her head at her own lack of forethought, Setsuna dug around in her shirt pocket for her ticket. With a relieved sigh, she pulled the valuable piece of paper out and scanned it for their departure and arrival times. "It says we should get to Hiroshima by 1317."

Konoka raised a finger to her lips thoughtfully, taking a glance at the digital readout at the front of the train that displayed the next destination and current time. "We've got three hours and seventeen minutes then, Secchan." The raven-haired girl nodded, not bothering to point out the lack of logic in stating something so obvious. It was merely another sign that Konoka was feeling a little off.

The healer hunkered down in her seat and crossed her arms over her chest with a yawn. Almost apologetically, she smiled over at Setsuna. "Is it okay with you if I nap for a little bit, Secchan? It's only about ten and I'm already tired..."

Setsuna nodded with a soft smile settled back into her own seat. "That's fine, Kono-chan. I think I'll do the same, actually." She crossed her legs and gripped the wooden sheath of her sword lightly to make sure it didn't fall over. Part of her skills as a highly trained swordswoman were a great deal of control over herself, physically and emotionally, and she was thankful for that as she forced herself into a surprisingly deep sleep.

Mocha colored eyes fluttered open as a voice over the speaker announced that the next stop would be Hiroshima. She blinked away the sleep that she had allowed to overtake her, and shook the uneasy dreams that had plagued her sleep away. Instinctively she tightened her grip on Yuunagi and straightened in her seat, looking immediately at Konoka to her left.

To her surprise, the girl was already awake and smiling broadly at her. "Good afternoon, Secchan." Her nap seemed to have restored her good mood in full, all traces of her reluctance to leave Mahora gone from any level of obvious observation.

"Good afternoon." She sat up straighter in her chair and arched her back, working out the kinks that had settled in it during the trip. She groaned and opened her eyes again, tightening her grip on Yuunagi's upper sheath. Around them, people were already getting out of their seats and gathering their belongings, and so Setsuna stood as well, Much to Konoka's dismay, she slung both of their duffel bags over her shoulder and held Yuunagi at her hip.

The train ground gently to a halt as the two made their way easily to the junction between cars. It took only seconds for the seven or eight people in front of them the get off, and Setsuna stepped over the small gap between the platform and the train, immediately extending a hand to Konoka, only to find her standing beside her, smiling brightly.

The swordswoman chuckled softly to herself and immediately started on the way to the clearly indicated escalators in the middle of the platform, Konoka in tow. Despite how bulky carrying two bags and a sword was, people either avoided the stern looking girl or she was exceptionally skilled at making her way untouched through a crowd.

She stepped onto the first step of the escalators, trying to keep herself pressed to the left side, and jumped slightly when she felt a tug on the end of her sword's hilt. She looked behind her and chuckled again. Konoka had managed to grab hold of the smooth wooden sheath before a rather bulky man dressed in the most ridiculous of robes, Arabian she assumed, waddled up between them. He didn't seem to notice the rather intrusive piece of wood pressing against his side and merely looked about in confusion, mopping at his brow with a rough bit of cloth.

Still smiling to herself, Setsuna stepped to the left as she cleared the top of Hiroshima's main train terminal. The rather obese Arabian man scampered past her, making a beeline for the apparent exit, his eyes darting about frantically as if searching for something. _Probably can't read Japanese..._

Konoka quickly rounded the edge of the stairwell and latched onto Setsuna's arm, surprising her with her directness. Setsuna forced down the blush that welled up within her and shifted so the two of them were more comfortable, leaning against a pillar. "Something wrong, Kono-chan?"

She looked up at Setsuna, and with a completely serious expression, nodded. "That man, the foreign one, smelled _really_ bad."

The usually stoic swordswoman stared at the girl for a moment, long enough for her to knit her brows in confusion, before a short laugh burst from her, rather louder than usual. "I can't believe you actually SAID that, Kono-chan!" She shook her head, still chuckling, and pushed herself off the pillar, pulling Konoka with her. "C'mon you, before you cause you an international incident..."

The healer-to-be pouted and cast an exaggerated glare at her un-noticing knight but allowed herself to be pulled along through the bustling terminal. "Secchan, how much time do we have before the boat launches?" Her innocent voice held a suspicious note that made Setsuna stop and turn, eying her curiously.

"Hungry, I take it?"

Konoka grinned up at her and nodded, still with an aura of innocence about her. "I wasn't really hungry this morning, but that long boring train ride kinda built up an appetite." She stepped closer to the raven-haired girl, looking up at her with a pleading expression and placing one hand on her shoulder lightly. "Please, Secchan?"

She drew back slowly, blushing steadily darker at the pleading, utterly cute look on Konoka's face, and nodded hurriedly. "O-of course, Kono-chan." She scanned the area for the ever present boxed lunches available at nearly all JR stations.

She raised her left hand and pointed through the crowds of milling people towards a well lit stand-alone island-like structure several yards away. "I think we can get some food there, Kono-chan." The other girl squeezed her hand and grinned happily, immediately taking the lead and drawing Setsuna long behind her, easily reversing the previous chain of command. _I wonder where all of her maturity goes sometimes..._ Setsuna thought ruefully as she was led through the crowds, not regretting the change of attitude at all. Truth be told, she found the cute and innocent act entirely irresistible.

Konoka released her hand as she fished around in her purse to find out how much money she'd thought to bring with her in cash. She looked back up at the lit-up display of the choices, then back down at her purse and frowned, biting her lower lip in a frustrated manner. Setsuna managed to fasten Yuunagi to a belt look with one hand, although the end of its sheath now stuck rather far out behind her, and stood beside Konoka, looking into her purse curiously. "Not enough money?"

The shorter girl hurriedly closed her purse and looked up at Setsuna in surprise. "Uh, no, no I've got plenty. I'm not really THAT hungry." She grinned reassuringly at Setsuna, who merely raised an eyebrow skeptically at her.

Taking quick stock of the store's selection, Setsuna motioned to one of the workers, an old man whose eyes were hidden by bushy gray eyebrows. "Excuse me, I'd like two of the extra large bentou, please." He nodded with surprising vigor and opened the display case to pull two of the rather large boxes from under the plastic display version.

"That'll be 2200 Yen, miss." With a curt nod, Setsuna fished two bills and two coins from her own stash of money and handed them across the counter to his waiting hand. Moments after she held a total of two duffel bags, one sword, a bag of two large boxed lunches, and the hand of a quietly protesting young woman. She easily tuned out Konoka's assurances of "You didn't have to do that, Secchan," and "I really don't need all this food..."

Shaking her head and smiling to herself, Setsuna stacked their bags against a railing on the wheelchair ramp and handed Konoka one of the boxes from the plastic bag. The other she took for herself, somewhat surprised at how hungry she was after seeing the food inside. Konoka reluctantly took the proffered food opened it. _I shouldn't've been so obvious. I probably sounded whiny._ She sighed. _She didn't need to spend that much on me for lunch._

She eyed her chopsticks with a frown. The cheap, wooden utensils were not, as they were supposed to be, identical. When she'd pulled them apart, the majority of the top of one remained stuck to the other, creating a very lopsided image. She sighed. _Even my chopsticks are turning out bad..._ She shrugged and started in on her food, finding that ebi tempura was surprisingly good at cheering her up.

They both kept kind of to themselves as they ate, although Setsuna maneuvered around their bags to stand closer to Konoka, sensing her mood was being dampened by something else, and sensing that she was somehow the cause of it. The chocolate-haired girl's thoughts drifted to the upcoming boat ride once she had finished with the deliciously battered shrimp, and she found herself wondering if the boat itself had to be enchanted to get to Syran Island.

With an odd little satisfied sound, Setsuna put the shiny black lid back on the box and slipped it back into the plastic bag, saving almost half of it for the boat ride. It wasn't listed, but she assumed the trip would last several hours at the least. Konoka eyed her with understandable surprise until it dawned on her that she hadn't eaten the entire thing. "Ooh, good idea, Secchan."

_I certainly don't want Secchan to end up buying more food just for the boat trip..._ She arranged her chopsticks atop her remaining food, then carefully replaced the lid upon the box. "That was good, Secchan." The swordswoman nodded, finding the assessment correct. For being merely station food, it was exceptionally good. She took Konoka's box from her and sat it atop her own, then began to gather their things up, heaving the combined duffel bags onto her shoulder again.

She reattached Yuunagi to her belt loop and, on a whim, unknotted the cord that held the bag around it so that it fell from its hilt, putting it in easy reach, though she was unsure why. Before she could grab it, Konoka managed to take hold of the food and grinned at the swordswoman victoriously. In a gesture that likely few other people can see, Setsuna stuck her tongue out at the girl and turned, holding her free hand out with a light blush.

_Aww, Secchan..._ With a happy smile, her mood lifting considerably, Konoka jumped up to the taller girl's side, taking fast hold of her hand, giggling to herself at the other girl's blush. Setsuna smiled to herself despite the annoying feeling of low-key panic that pervaded her at displaying her feelings in public. She had yet to figure out its origin, but she had decided to do her best to ignore it.

"The boat docks are...that way, Kono-chan." Setsuna raised their clasped hands and pointed at the northern exit where one of the suspended signs showed a picture of a ship, along with the designation that it too was, oddly enough, a JR form of transportation. _Japanese RAIL boats?_ Sometimes Setsuna had to merely wonder at the logic of companies. The very concept was paradoxical.

As the two headed for the exit, she opened her mouth to call Konoka's attention to the illogical nature of the idea of a boat being part of JR but closed her mouth abruptly upon hearing a different voice. "Konoka!"

The chocolate-haired girl stopped in her tracks and looked over her shoulder, immediately breaking into a smile. "Kumiko!" She released Setsuna's hand on turned on her heel to trot back to meet her rather similar looking friend.

Setsuna looked down at her now empty hand and flexed her fingers, almost as if confirming that Konoka had let go. She sighed and tried to pass it off as just excitement with seeing a friendly face, but she still felt a pang of unease at being so easily released as she had been. She watched the two hug briefly, stiffening defensively, then stopped while they walked slowly towards the swordswoman. _She'd better not be on the same boat..._

From the crowd behind the approaching duo, the taller woman who Setsuna recognized with an immediate surge of dislike as Kuroshima Kumiko's mother emerged, clutching a ticket in her hand and looking about for her daughter. Setsuna raised an eyebrow when she saw the woman's alarmed reaction at seeing her daughter and Konoka talking so cordially together, laughing over something.

Glaring at the woman who'd yet to notice her, Setsuna began backtracking for Konoka, not willing to let her within the presence of the mother and daughter combination that both seemed to have an unnatural tendency to despise the hanyou with a passion. She slipped her arm through Konoka's possessively and pulled her a little closer, surprising both of the other girls out of their conversation.

"What's wrong, Secchan?" Konoka frowned and looked from her girlfriend to her friend, sensing the powerful and immediate change of mood upon Kumiko recognizing the presence of the raven-haired girl. She glared over Konoka's shoulder at her, although Setsuna refused to meet her gaze, deciding to smile uncertainly at Konoka.

"Nothing. I just thought I'd chase you back down." She turned a cute shade of pink, by Konoka's standards, and clasped Konoka's free hand again. "You escaped."

Even the healer blushed and squeezed her love's hand, surprised at the unusually affectionate and overt gestures and words. A small part of her mind noted that it wasn't until Kumiko showed up that she began to act as such, but she didn't consciously recognize it, despite the other girl's silent anger at having her conversation interrupted.

Setsuna felt both a surge of anger and a surge of victory when Kumiko cleared her throat, trying to draw Konoka's attention back to herself. "As I was saying, Konoka," with an apologetic smile, the young healer turned back to Kumiko, "I hope we can get dorm rooms that're near each other. Then I can come over and visit no problem!" Setsuna winced visibly. "It'll be like old times again."

"That'd be great, wouldn't it, Secchan?" An unintelligible murmur from her side was enough to satisfy her, and she continued. "We can all study and maybe have sleepovers, and-"

Setsuna couldn't help but sigh. Not much more than a week ago, she'd had such high hopes of spending time alone with Konoka, studying together, eating together, just...being together. She glared silently at the intruder who was steadily breaking down those plans. _Maybe if I can get Konoka to believe that she's out for something..._ She immediately shook the idea from her head. Not only wasn't it honest, it was too easy to prove incorrect. _Dammit, I know life's not fair but this is stupid._

"Kumiko." The couple stopped as Kumiko did, turning to meet her mother. "Here's your ticket," she held it out to the girl who took it eagerly, "and this is goodbye. You know which boat it is, yes?" Her daughter nodded, and she did the same in return. "And you know what I told you to do, yes?" Her eyes narrowed threateningly at her, and Konoka shook her head slightly at seeing the sad state of their relationship.

"Yes mother." The memory of what her mother had told her to do was painfully clear, and she couldn't help but wince, knowing that Konoe Konoka was so near to her right now. She couldn't imagine carrying her mother's plan through... "I remember, and I'll get it done."

"Good. You know the consequences if you don't." Setsuna briefly took advantage of the nearly malicious tone in her voice to entertain thoughts of what horrible things might befall the girl if her task were to be left undone, but passed off the thought of impeding her from doing whatever. It was probably something stupid anyway.

Without any sign of affection, Kuroshima Yumi turned from her daughter and strode with a pompous step back into the thick of the crowds. Likewise, her daughter didn't spare her a second glance and returned to the duo a few feet away. "Sorry about the interruption, Konoka."

Setsuna stiffened slightly. Again, she was completely ignored. "That's okay, Kumiko." She squeezed Setsuna's hand happily. "I guess you're takin' one of the more normal lines, huh? Me and Secchan have a boat chartered by Father just for us."

At that, Setsuna allowed herself to smile. She'd forgotten that Konoe Eishun had called in a favor of one of his friends in the coast guard and gotten them a private ride to the secretive island. She squeezed back and grinned. "That's right. Just for the two of us." Konoka turned and smiled back up at her, once more happy with the overtness of her affection today, although her cute blush was lacking.

Kumiko started to retort, but Setsuna broke in and pointed to their left. They now stood in the open, a strong breeze blowing through the area. The sea was easily visible at something of a short distance, and numerous boats rocked on it. "I believe your ship is that way, if it's part of the public lines."

For the first time that day Kumiko looked directly at her without pretense of doing it secretly and glared, knowing she was correct. For a moment she said nothing, trying to think of an excuse to stay a little longer. Spending time with the Konoe heir was very important to her mother's ambitions, and the punishment would be fierce if she didn't. With an inward wince she decided there was no reasonable way to do so and nodded in defeat, turning away from the hanyou back to Konoka.

"Yeah, I've got to go this way." She glanced at her ticket. "My boat leaves pretty soon anyway," she said by way of excuse, perhaps to herself as much to the couple. "I'll see you at the school, Konoka!" Her voice rose happily at knowing they'd meet again within a few hours, and with another light friendly hug, she was on her way down the sloping road in the opposite direction that Setsuna was more than ready to walk.

With a contented sigh, Konoka turned away from the retreating girl and latched onto Setsuna's arm, pulling the limb tight against and smiling into her shoulder. "It's so great to know that we still have a friend, even though we're going to a completely new school, isn't it Secchan?"

Again she was answered with a non-conclusive murmur and she looked up worriedly at the slightly taller girl. _I wonder what's wrong with Secchan...nothing bad happened today between them..._ She continued to look at her finely sculpted face for several moments, but Setsuna either didn't notice or ignored the look, instead keeping her eyes set ahead on what appeared to be their boat.

With a weak sigh, the healer buried her face into Setsuna shoulder once more, breathing in the scent of her girlfriend happily, not very fond of the salty sea air. Reflexively squeezing her hand in return, Setsuna led the two of them down the somewhat steep road towards the docks and the waiting officer's yacht.

"Thank you, Captain Kanada." Konoka bowed dutifully, her hands clasped before her and her hair swinging down cutely beside her face. Behind her in the cabin, Setsuna gratefully sat their duffel bags in the corner nearest the starboard bulkhead, laying Yuunagi across the lower bunk. With a sigh, she sat down beside the hilt of her sword and wrapped her arms lightly around her stomach.

_Not even on the boat for ten minutes and I already feel woozy..._ She shook her head, despising her inherent and persistent weakness to water in all of its forms, and stood back up, winding her way between the table and the wall back to Konoka who was working on locking the cabin door. It was a heavy lock, and Setsuna shook her head with a playful smile and easily slid the bolt through the accompanying piece.

Smiling widely, happy with their newfound solitude, Konoka wrapped both of her arms around the other girl and sighed happily, burying her face against her chest. "Isn't this nice, Secchan? It's my first time on a boat for this long, and we have our own cabin!" She looked up at the girl when she once again received that same neutral noise she'd been hearing off and on that day.

"What's wrong, Secchan?" She frowned in confusion, pouting. "You've been acting funny since we got off the train."

_Actually, probably only since about when we met up with Kumiko. _She decided not to mention this, and instead shrugged, bringing her hands up to Konoka's shoulders. "I guess I'm just getting nervous about things." It wasn't a lie, per se, but it still nagged at her rather considerable conscience. "Once we get to school, I'm sure I'll be back to normal." She smiled down at Konoka. "Once we get off the boat, I'm sure I'll be better, no matter where it is," she laughed.

"Aww, Secchan, you didn't say you didn't like boats." She buried her face against the girl again and began maneuvering back to the bunks with intentions of making her lay down. "You should sleep while we're underway then. That way you won't feel as bad."

The swordswoman chuckled to herself and easily brought Konoka to a stop by planting her feet against the decking and squeezing her shoulders reassuringly. "It's okay, Kono-chan. I'm not sick or anything, I just don't like it. It's...funny." She smiled again, yet more reassuringly, into Konoka's worried face and leaned in, placing a very light kiss on her forehead, blushing profusely. "I'm fine, really."

Konoka blushed a little bit and smiled, hugging her again. "If you're sure, Secchan." She felt the other girl nod, and sighed happily as her arms encircled her, surrounding her in a shield of protection that made her feel safer than any construction ever would.

She stayed like that for a moment, merely holding Konoka to her both because she loved having her close, and because she was unsure of her footing. When the deck finally seemed to even out somewhat, she squeezed Konoka's shoulders and released her. "How about we find something to do to pass the time, huh?"

The other girl raised a finger to her lips, thinking, then nodded. "I've got just the thing, Secchan!" Ignoring the curious look of the taller girl, she skipped across the tilting deck with ease to their bags, rifling through hers. Setsuna looked away with a blush, immediately noticing the length of her girlfriend's skirt. She studied the wood grain of the ceiling intently until she felt a tug on the edge of her shirt. Still pink, she looked down at her to see her holding two decks of cards. On their back was an intricate pattern strangely appearing to be a series of magic circles.

"Ah, I see what you've got in mind." Konoka held one deck out to her and kept the other firm in her hand. Setsuna accepted the deck with a nod.

"It looked like you'd forgotten 'em in your room," she said brightly, although her voice held a puzzled note. When they'd purchased the cards, Setsuna had seemed mildly excited about them, though not as much as her. She privately expected the reason to be because it was something else the two of them could to together. To the swordswoman, the simple spell used to set the deck to the player, or Mage, was nothing out of the ordinary, but Konoka had been utterly amazed at it. The accompanying flash of light and rush of energy was thrilling, and the excitement she felt at seeing several of the blank cards take on her countenance was great.

After flipping through the deck and assuring herself it was the correct one, Setsuna nodded in satisfaction and walked unsteadily to the unoccupied chair at the table, absently shuffling the deck in her hands.

Konoka kicked out with one foot and knocked the other girl's chair out from beneath the table with a grin. Rolling her eyes at the flamboyant manner she'd pulled her chair out, Setsuna sat heavily in it, glad to be off her feet, and sat her deck firmly on the tabletop, every edge lined up to perfection. "Let's play."

The following several hours of the ride consisted of much energetic calling out of attacks and blocks, threats and taunts as the couple became more and more engrossed in the magical combat based card game. Setsuna seemed to have a particular love for it, perhaps because it was most unlikely that should be a Magistra Magi and have access to the sorts of spells a true Magi would have, though the cards the in the game hardly exemplified those spells. Without their knowledge nor permission, the ship drew close to the shore of Syran Island.

"Hmm...how about..." she shifted the cards in her hand indecisively, then pulled one out, "this one!" A blue card landed in the middle of the table, and Setsuna cocked an eyebrow at its effect. She didn't use long ranged cards that much anyway, and it seemed pointless for Konoka to disable them. "And I'll attack with this."

A rather plain red card followed the blue one, landing on Konoka's active card space with expert ease. She removed it after a few moments in which Setsuna declined to defend against it and took note of her loss of HP on a notepad beside them.

"Please, Kono-chan, don't make me do this." Setsuna tugged on one of her cards with a grin, knowing Konoka would have no way of knowing if it was a bluff or not.

She wrinkled her nose and stuck her tongue out at the swordswoman and shook her head. "No can do, Secchan. Not until you surrender."

Shaking her head, Setsuna became somber. "Then I'm afraid you've left me with little choice, Kono-chan. I'm sorry it's had to come to this." She flipped a blue effect card onto the table, one which significantly boosted the next card's AP, then sat back, gathering herself as she did before an assault on an enemy.

"Hyakuretsu Ouka Zan!" Her voice boomed through the cabin as she all but slammed a card with her own face upon its surface onto the table, startling Konoka nearly enough to drop her cards. Considering the boosted AP and its base attack, the healer frowned and surveyed her hand, desperately hoping she had some sort of defense. With a sigh, she shook her head and picked up the pen again. Such a card was only available to the girl who had just so thoroughly beaten her, as it was a type created by each player to resemble themselves. Of Setsuna's many skills, it had drawn one of her best as its chosen attack, and personified her perfectly, even, to Konoka's opinion, the cute picture of her on the front.

"Goodbye, HP. I knew you well..." She couldn't help but giggle as she marked out her hit points, then turned back to a Setsuna whose face was marred by a Cheshire smile. "I bet you stacked your deck, Secchan." She stuck her tongue out again at her.

"I would never!" Her voice was tight with mock indignation and she stood, feigning anger and tossed her hand to the table, the cards scattering slightly. "I can't believe you'd say that kind of thing! You're the one with a track record for cheating!" Despite what would normally have been grave and serious words in an argument, she grinned.

"Remember on our first date, the race car game? Then again on Chamo-san's laptop." She pointed an accusing finger at her and stalked towards the smaller girl. Konoka squealed and quickly left her chair dodging around another chair and towards the safety of the bunks.

"I didn't cheat, Secchan!" She cowered, laughing, on the first bunk, enjoying their game immensely. It was so rare that Setsuna would totally allow her guard down, and she intended to make full use of it. "You just weren't paying enough attention! Admit it, you cheated!"

"No," she shot back, stepping ever closer, raising her hands in a mock of a hunting bear's claws, slinking closer like a cat.

The healer squealed again and covered her face. "Yes!"

"Noh!" Setsuna froze and blinked, immediately drawn from the playful mood.

"Noh?" The couple said in unison, looking at each other, neither saying it quite the same way they'd heard in the previous seconds.

"Nohnonoh!" Setsuna spun on her heel, her well trained ears discerning an approximate location for whatever was making the noise easily.

In a single fluid motion, she pulled Yuunagi, sword bag and all, from the lower bunk, holding it before her and advanced on the corner of the cabin where their luggage was arranged so carelessly. As she moved closer a rustling sound became noticeable and she felt her muscles tense a bit more as she approached. She crept to within five feet of the stack of bags with nothing to go on but sounds, although they were certainly easy enough to use.

Without warning she saw something shift within Konoka's duffel bag and the end of Yuunagi, still in its sword bag, instantly struck out for the spot she'd seen move. "Nooooh!" She leapt back in surprise, her eyes wide and stared at the bag.

"What the..." She jumped when she felt Konoka's hands on her shoulders as she peered over her toward their luggage curiously, slightly alarmed at the oddly pained little noise.

"What do you think it is, Secchan?" The swordswoman shrugged, completely without a clue, and began to once more advance on the luggage, Konoka still holding onto her shoulders. The both of them jumped nigh on a foot when the zipper on Konoka's luggage shivered, then began to move down the track. Setsuna's eyes narrowed and focused on the zipper, knowing whatever was moving it would appear next to it, and readied her currently harmless sword for another thrust.

"Noh. Nonoh noh." Almost in what could be called an annoyed manner, the little voice chattered on in its repetitive though undeniably cute way. After a second of silence, a perfectly round, yellow head popped up out of the bag. It appeared to be wearing some kind of hood as a floppy "tail-like" extension hung down from the top of its head. Its eyes were small and pristine white but for a thin black iris at the very edges. The small opening that must have been its mouth was also small, but as they observed it was large enough to accommodate a stick of the popular Prech snack food.

The youthful healer blinked in surprise at seeing the small undefineable thing, then in recognition that it had taken some of her food. "Hey, that's my Prech I got for snacks!"

The small thing turned to her upon either hearing her voice or the name of its preferred prey and frowned. From within the bag it drew one of the green rectangular boxes of Prech clutched it to itself defiantly. "Nonoh!" It glared fiercely at them, getting only a confused expression from the shorter of the two and an annoyed twitch from the taller one that held a stick-thing.

"Nonoh," it repeated, shaking its head and hugging the box, finally finishing the piece of Prech it had been snacking on since they'd "met."

"Um..." Setsuna stepped up closer to it so that Yuunagi's end was in range of its small yellow body. "Yes?" Again, Yuunagi moved forward, this time not having the luggage between it and its target.

With a cry, the cute little being was knocked over backwards, taking the box of Prech with it, spilling the open plastic package across the decking. It was silent for a moment, and Setsuna stepped closer and peered over the edge of the bags, chuckling when she saw its eyes rotating about its head, obviously bewildered.

For the third time in the last several minutes Setsuna jumped, this time because of a surprise from behind. She turned around and Konoka lightly thumped her on the shoulder again. "You didn't have to hit the poor little thing." She made a face at the taller girl. "It's too cute to go around poking it."

Setsuna opened her mouth to defend herself, but closed it with a pout, so foreign an expression on her that if Konoka had been looking she'd have done a double-take. But Konoka was not looking; rather she brushed past her knight and knelt at the side of the luggage, observing the little thing slowly regain consciousness. "Aww...look at it."

Setsuna peered suspiciously over Konoka's shoulder and made a noncommittal grunt before walking slightly unsteadily back to her chair at the table. She started compiling her cards into a deck again as Konoka giggled at the being's obvious love of Prech. As soon as it was floating again, apparently by way of the inner-tube around its waist, it had fluttered about, filling its arms with the simple snack, muttering a calculating "Noh" with each stick.

He floated back up to the top of the luggage, ignoring Konoka's near presence and carefully slid them back into the plastic sleeve, then the box. With a satisfied nod, he closed the box and picked it back up. "Hey, Secchan, look at it now."

Setsuna sighed and turned around to look. The small being looked at one first, then the other, finally glaring at Setsuna and muttering more "noh"s under its breath. The thing turned back to Konoka after apparently finishing its tirade and cocked its head in a cute fashion before waving one small hand at her. "Nononooh." A hum filled the cabin and light cascaded around it before it simply disappeared, green box of Prech and all.

The both of them blinked a few times before words were exchanged, then Konoka walked closer to where the being had been and tentatively waved her hand through the air it had been standing in. "Wow, it's really gone, Secchan..." She turned to look at the hanyou with wide eyes. "What do you think it was?"

Setsuna settled back into her chair and crossed her arms thoughtfully. "Besides a thief, you mean? Well, I'm not sure. It doesn't look like any magical creature or demon I've seen before, and the Ki I felt from it was definitely not anything powerful, but it wasn't really...it's complicated. It's like it's alive and it's not." She grinned weakly at Konoka in apology of her inability to articulate and shrugged. "It wasn't a paper double either because they don't teleport like that."

The other girl laughed as she zipped her bag back up. "That still doesn't tell me what it was, Secchan." Setsuna laughed and stretched over the back of the chair, finally feeling the effects of being cooped up in a ship's cabin for several hours. She was about to make a sarcastic response when the door opened, the first time since it had been closed, and the Captain descended the steps into the cabin, tipping his hat at the two occupants.

"We've made land at Syran Island's North West dock, ladies." He motioned at their luggage. "If you like one of the crew can carry that up for you."

Setsuna stood, grasping the back of her chair still and shook her head. "No thank you, I can manage it." The man nodded his acquiescence and traced his steps back up the steps and onto deck, leaving the door only slightly ajar.

The swordswoman looked over at Konoka, feeling butterflies in her stomach and grinned. "Well, Kono-chan, we're finally here."

Konoe Eishun's daughter squealed and spun around on the toes of one foot, astounding Setsuna at her balance even on the gently rocking boat. "I can't believe we're here! We're really at a school for magic, Secchan, and we're students!"

Setsuna chuckled to herself, relieved to see her love's mood so improved from it's low that morning. This was the Konoka that she loved to see more than any other part of her personality. Keeping her balance as best she could, Setsuna carefully swung the bags over her shoulder and grabbed Yuunagi from where'd sat it to rest against the bulkhead beneath the window. She affixed it to her belt and waited for Konoka to gather her small miscellaneous things before offering her free arm to her, a slight blush faintly covering her cheeks.

The other girl giggled and took the proffered arm gladly, mocking a curtsy to her much like a princess would to the knight who had asked her to dance. Setsuna led Konoka to the step and motioned her up first, keeping her gaze on her to be sure she didn't fall with the unsteady rocking. Once Konoka was on deck she hurried up after her, actually thankful for the bulky luggage she carried as it helped steady her in the cramped stairway.

The sun was setting behind her, casting long shadows across the massive campus. Trees cloaked large parts of the grounds. Nearly completely hidden in the landscaping, Setsuna could just make out the structure of large buildings set back in the trees. The distance and foliage was enough that she couldn't before now, but can now

Konoka waved her to hurry up, and she did so without a second thought, eager to disembark from the floating transport. With a wave at the captain, the two of them hopped down from the deck onto the wooden planking of the docks, finding much to Setsuna's relief that they were completely stable where they stood.

The two started down the network of docks that made up the North West dock network, picking their way towards shore, when a low voice, carried by the breeze, brought them to an unhappy halt.

"Wow, she's built pretty well for bein' her height," stated the voice of a male in extremely hushed tones, obviously not intending for either of them to hear. "Personally, I think the one 'eside her's pretty good lookin' too. Tall and thin, the way I like 'em."

It wasn't until Konoka whimpered and threaded her arm through Setsuna's that the swordswoman knew that she wasn't the only one who could hear it, and snapped out of her indecision and patted Konoka's hand before looking down at the healer with an annoyed expression. "Are those aimed at us, Kono-chan?"

With a weak grin, Konoka nodded up at her. "Yeah, they are. Unless they're talking about the ship's crew..." She watched as Setsuna once again pulled her deranged chameleon act and turned an angry shade of red. With a thunk, the duffel bags hit the deck and the hushed conversation stopped entirely.

As she tightened the not in the the cord around Yuunagi, she began to stalk back towards the middle of the docks, heading for the two instigators. She tightened her grip on the smooth wood, taking morbid pleasure in the smooth feel of the familiar object in her hands

She sent a silent request for forgiveness to the blade forged especially for her upon her induction into the Shinmeiryuu for intending to use it as a club as she neared the two figures sitting on the edge of the dock.

Looking between each other, one boy sat his fishing rod at his side and stood, cracking his fists in preparation as the other took several calculated steps back, his lips moving slightly, speaking even quieter than he had earlier.

"Stop that right this instant you three!"

Setsuna blinked and turned on her heel, Yuunagi only half out of its sheath. At the edge of the docks, not fifty feet from Konoka was a tall red-headed woman. The expression on her pretty face was not a happy one, and it was with a sinking feeling that Setsuna realized that she was in trouble before actually setting foot onto the island itself.

_Footnotes:_

_Terminatio Pactum – "Terminate Contract"_

_Shinkansen – Japanese bullet train._

_Bentou – A lunch box available at many locations, containing a wide variety of food._

_ebi tempura – Battered and fried shrimp_

_Hyakuretsu Ouka Zan – A technique of Shinmeiryuu_

_Prech – Delicious pretzel sticks that the creature is particularly fond of._


	4. Settling In

_**Disclaimer: If we claim we own the series, we might get crushed by a giant Hot Spring Turtle, in addition to the aforementioned weapons. Thanks, but no thanks.**_

_Okashira: ((Rubs a new bruise and glares at a particular reviewer.)) Although it's taken a little while longer than we'd intended, chapter 4 is finally up._

_ChibiSecchan: ((Snitches a black belt from her Karate sensei as she comes out of the closet in full Karate gi.)) Mine's still going through stitching, but I'm a qualified black belt...NOW WHO WANTS TO KICK AND STEP ON US FOR UPDATES!_

_Okashira: ((Grins and steps back.)) We welcome reviews, of course, as it gives us a chance to exercise. We hope you'll review this chapter as well. ((Nods for ChibiSecchan to proceed.))_

_ChibiSecchan: It's just that we don't take physical abuse well, after all the laser beams, Aerial Aces, Water Pulses and whatever Juraian weapons we've endured...((takes on the violent reviewer))_

_Okashira: ((Averts his gaze and pretends it's not happening.)) We're steadily gaining more and more characters as this progresses, so please watch for their appearances and roles. ((Coughs.)) And weapons._

_ChibiSecchan: ((Walks into the closet again and changes back to her school clothes after dumping the dougi into the laundry.)) Yep, although we suggest those with an allergy to fluffy animals prepare a mask as they proceed._

_Okashira: ((Nods with a grin.)) You're gonna be seeing a lot of them soon!_

_ChibiSecchan: ((Grabs her bag and makes a rush to the door for the hell that's known as "college.")) And feathers too!_

_**Gradual Changes Book 1 - Newer Bits of Life**_

**_Chapter 04 Settling In_**

_**By OkashiraShinomori and ChibiSecchan**_

_**Beta Reading by Spiritmage and Shinmeiryuu**_

"**Never become a relationship counselor, Secchan."– Konoe Konoka**

Konoka sighed heavily, her shoulders drooping with the sound. _Secchan's already in trouble..._ She shook her head sadly and turned her gaze on the well-mannered swordswoman who sat a few feet in front of her, back straight and eyes ahead, focused firmly on the large oaken desk. Only the slow, constant swinging of her right leg betrayed her nervousness, and then only to Konoka.

The young healer turned to look at the two young men who sat, slightly removed, to Setsuna's left. They were obviously upper-classmen to some extent, and seemed rather accustomed to the circumstances they found themselves in as they chatted freely about their schedules, no longer paying the least attention to either of the girls. When the red-headed teacher that had caught Setsuna and the other two had left, on her way to retrieve their profiles from storage, Konoka had worried that something more would happen, but to her immense relief the two guys had immediately launched into conversation while Setsuna fidgeted in her own unnoticeable way.

_I don't think Secchan's ever really been in trouble before..._ Konoka had also never landed herself into enough trouble to equal what her girlfriend was apparently in, but she found it likely that the raven-haired girl, judging by her personality alone, was only slightly perturbed. Although her military posture would tell someone who didn't know her as well a very different story. The healer squirmed in her seat, wanting to go over to Setsuna and just stand there, or talk to her, or say something. It always helped to have a little support when one was about to get in trouble.

But that wasn't a good idea, lest Konoka end up in the same trouble that the three before her were in, though likely with a less harsh punishment. The teacher had specifically instructed her to wait in the seat she was in, though she hadn't forbidden her from talking. Regardless, she decided not to press her luck and remained silent, drumming her fingers on the wooden armrest as they awaited the return of the woman.

As Konoka shifted her weight to the other side of the chair, bringing her left leg up under her, the door opened silently, admitting the woman they waited on. Konoka turned immediately to look at her once more. She really was the definition of beautiful; long red hair, though she kept it in a bun, a full figure despite her slightly above-average height. Her smile was kind, as were her eyes, and Konoka had the strangest feeling when she looked into those violet spheres. It was a familiar feeling, but she couldn't seem to place it.

The teacher, clad in a relatively loose sundress with a conveniently similarly colored school staff jacket, smiled at her as she passed, headed for her desk. She sat the papers on the desktop as she rounded the side, sitting gracefully into the high backed chair. "Now, Sakurazaki-san, Shirai-kun, and Haitani-kun, would you mind explaining what happened at the docks?"

All four sets of eyes went to her, but all four mouths remained silent. The two guys, Shirai and Haitani apparently, looked between each other, then at the swordswoman, though her ponytail obscured her face from view. The one with longer hair spoke up first. "We were just talkin' to each other and she," he jerked a thumb at Setsuna who chose to ignore him, "decided she had to go all samurai on us and tried to attack or somethin'. You saw it."

The woman nodded and looked at Setsuna. "Do you have anything you wish to add, Sakurazaki-san? What they said is what I saw."

The girl cleared her throat, blushing slightly. "They were discussing, although whispered, Konoka and myself, Sensei." The woman seemed nonplussed until Setsuna turned darker and continued, "Inappropriate things."

The teacher's mouth formed a small "o" of understanding and she turned, a little angrily, on the two young men. "Is that so?" Despite the still kind sound of her voice, both boys cringed and exchanged looks.

"It wasn't insulting or anything, Kusanagi-sensei." This time it was the one with a buzz-cut. "Most girls'd take it as a compliment, really." He glared across the room at Setsuna, although she once again ignored them with her old stony stubbornness.

She shook her head. "That doesn't matter, Haitani-kun." She regarded him sternly and raised an accusing finger. "Girls do not appreciate being made the center of guys' lude conversations." The teacher spared a glance at Setsuna. "Although Sakurazaki-san's actions were a bit extreme, they were not unwarranted."

Kusanagi Mizuho sat back in her chair, still looking at the boys who were appearing increasingly more uncomfortable. "If the two of them wish, they could charge you with sexual harassment, I'm sure." Both boys whined plaintively at this, and she held her hand up for silence and instead looked at both Konoka and Setsuna meaningfully. "But I don't think there's cause for that."

Setsuna nodded acquiescence. "If it's not too much, Kusanagi-sensei," she said the name unsurely, but continued when she made no protest or corrected her, "I would ask that they both apologize to Konoka, at least."

The both of them cringed when Kusanagi Mizuho smiled warmly at the idea and nodded. "I think that's a fine idea, Sakurazaki-san." She turned to Haitani and Shirai, still smiling brightly at them. "I do think you owe both of these young ladies an apology, don't you?" Although her voice was as kind as always, there was clearly no question in her words.

Looking between each other and grumbling low beneath their breaths, the two boys stood slowly and turned towards Konoka, bowing shallowly at the waist. "We're sorry, Konoe-san." As they straightened, the sound of their teacher clearing her throat caused Haitani's eye to twitch and with great reluctance they repeated the gesture towards the swordswoman.

Still grumbling to themselves, they looked at the door in unison and Konoka got the idea the two were rarely parted, so attuned to each other were their movements. Regardless of their behavior, it made her happy to know that they were close friends.

"Yes, you are dismissed." The seemingly imperturbable teacher waved them off with a friendly smile. "Please remember to keep your thoughts about girls to yourselves from now on, gentlemen."

"Yes, Sensei," they muttered as they walked quickly out, avoiding the triumphant gaze of the Konoe heir. The door closed and Konoka gathered herself for a moment as the woman at the front of the room pulled the small stack of papers that were their files over and took out a pen.

"Um, Kusanagi-sensei?" Her voice was quieter than it had been in a while, and Setsuna motioned to her to come up to take the seat beside her. She smiled at the girl and hurriedly did so, smiling shyly at Kusanagi Mizuho as she paused in her writing and looked up quizzically.

"Setsuna and I just got here, we were getting off the boat when this happened, and I was wondering if you could, um, tell us how to get to our dorms." After their immediate apprehension, the group of four students had been led quickly to one of the large buildings they had spied to the trees. Much to their dismay, the layout of the corridors hardly seemed logical, and they took numerous twists and turns on their way to what was presumably the office of the woman before them. Konoka knew there was no way she could find her way out, though she hadn't been given the chance to ask Setsuna about it.

The woman again smiled brightly at her and nodded, making an affirmative noise. "Sure thing, Konoe-san." She tapped the sheets of papers. "Let me finish up this paperwork really fast and I'll help you two find your rooms."

Setsuna and Konoka both nodded, deciding it best to let her simply get her work done so they could move on. The moment of silence was short, and Setsuna's gaze was the first to be drawn by the unusual light show at the edge of the large wooden desk. She blinked in disbelief and pointed at the little creature that had appeared as it floated around the edge of a book towards the teacher.

"That's the thing that stole your Prech, Konoka!" Both the chocolate-haired girl and the young teacher looked at the small yellow form. It merely smiled and produced a stick of Prech from behind its back.

"Noh." Almost tauntingly, it took a significant bite from the stick, crumbs scattering across the glossy surface of the desk it stood upon.

Mizuho turned back to Setsuna and blinked. "What?" She looked back at the thing, "Marie stole food from you, Konoe-san?" Her voice held a note of innocent disbelief. As Konoka nodded silent confirmation, the thing dubbed "Marie" began to, as inconspicuously as it could manage, float back behind the stack of books he'd appeared from behind. "Marie!"

The irony that, despite having just handled a disciplinary situation, this was the first time they'd heard the rather mellow woman raise her voice, did not escape Setsuna, and she couldn't help the small smile that flitted across her face when the Marie thing stopped instantly, hovering in place, its back still facing the tall woman. "Noh..."

She raised a finger at it as if scolding a child and placed her pen on the desk. "I know you like Prech, Marie, but it's wrong to steal, and especially from a student!" She shook her head and sighed, "I don't know where you pick up these bad habits." Konoka raised a curious eyebrow when their teacher shook her head and sighed. "I know it's not from Kei-kun or myself, so where are you getting these things from?"

She seemed to remember something and again shook the finger accusingly. "Have you been visiting Kamishiro-kun without my permission, Marie?"

Setsuna almost laughed out loud when, like a small child, the thing scuffed its little foot across the surface of the desk, its hands playing idly on its apparent floating device, not meeting Mizuho's gaze. "Nonooh..."

Still watching the figure with a disapproving gaze, Mizuho stood from her chair and faced Konoka, clasping her hands before her politely and bowed, her hair cascading down over her head and shoulders, then bounced back up, smiling apologetically. "I'm terribly sorry, Konoe-san, that Marie took your Prech." She glared again at him out of the corner of her eye and he hurried behind the stack of books, peeking his head back out once he was hidden. "I assure you it won't happen again."

Konoka smiled and waved her hands before her, shaking her head. "No, Kusanagi-sensei, it's okay, really." Setsuna made as if to comment, but decided not to, figuring her love already knew how she felt about the foreign looking thing. Konoka walked over to the edge of the desk and extended her hand towards Marie, still smiling. "His name is Marie?"

Mizuho looked a little relieved that the high profile student wasn't angry about the stolen snack and relaxed a bit, nodding. "Yes, that's what we call him. He seems to like it."

"What is he, if it's okay to ask?" Marie looked up at Konoka's face hesitantly, trying to gauge if she was friend, foe, or Prech, then floated a little closer to her.

"He's actually an active example of the subject I teach." She sat down at her desk and pushed a textbook labeled "Applying the Arcane to the Mystic, Vol. 1" closer to Konoka. "I'm the head of the electronics department, and I teach the class concerning the effects magic and technology have on each other."

Setsuna stepped up to Konoka's side, curious to learn more about such a broad subject, her eyes resting intently on the fair-eyed teacher.

"So he's a combination of magic and technology?" the young healer asked as he floated into her hand, stabilizing himself with her thumb as his feet touched down on her palm.

With a casual air hardly befitting to a teacher, Mizuho pulled her chair up beneath her and sat heavily into it, clasping her hands and stretching backwards. "Mmm, yes." She sat up straight again and watched her little friend examine Konoka's hand, no doubt looking for anything she might have stashed away, regardless of such being impossible. "I was there when he was activated, and cast the enchantments on him myself to do so." She smiled at the memory, probably like she would if it had been a child of hers.

"Where was he created?" Setsuna asked, the first real interaction she'd had with the conversation.

Mizuho looked at her, almost having forgotten her presence in her remembering and explaining. "It was a laboratory in Japan. Connected to another campus, actually. The Mahora Robotics Institute, or something like that." She shrugged, thinking the tidbit of information to be inconsequential until Konoka drew in a breath in surprise, causing her to look her way once more.

"Mahora? In Saitama Prefecture?" She looked excitedly at Setsuna who merely cocked a half smile to sate her. "That's the school me and Secchan transferred from!"

Their new teacher took half a second to comprehend that, then smiled and clapped her hands together. "Is that so? What a coincidence that we should all meet first thing upon your landing on the island."

Konoka smiled back at her and nodded, half of her attention on Marie who had taken to floating along her sleeve, traveling up her shoulder to float in circles around her head, muttering "noh"s of various meaning under his breath.

As if suddenly recalling something, Mizuho landed her right fist in her left hand, the noise drawing the attention of both girls. "Do you know if they've ever completed their large-scale robotics project?"

"Large-scale..." Setsuna looked at Konoka, who nodded, figuring they were both on the same track and were correct. "If you're speaking our classmate, Karakuri Chachamaru-san, then yes, it's been completed." She cringed at a more recent memory of others like Chachamaru, but fundamentally different. "And then some."

Mizuho cocked her head at the last statement, but decided not to ask. "How big of a success is, Karakuri-san, you said?"

Setsuna smiled, one corner of her mouth twitching slightly, not wanting to particularly destroy the young woman's hopes for the project. "She's...pretty normal looking, I guess." _If you read a lot of manga..._

The red-head didn't apparently catch the indecisiveness in her voice as she simply smiled brightly. "That's really good to hear. Perhaps there can be mass construction once Karakuri-san has been fully evaluated and tested to her full potential."

"Ooh, I hope not..." Setsuna muttered, just loud enough for Konoka to hear it, who giggled and wagged a finger her direction in a mock authoritative manner.

Mizuho looked curiously between them, then shrugged. "I suppose I really should have contacted Hakase-san by now about the project, but I've been so busy since getting my post here," she continued as she picked her pen back up and returned the majority of her attention to the documents before her, seeming to be half finished with them at least.

"You know Hakase-chan too?" Konoka inquired, her voice rising once more in excitement. It seemed too good to be true that the first member of the staff they'd meet would know some of their previous classmates well enough to recall their names after as long as it had been since she'd met them.

She nodded and flipped another page, scanning it quickly before jotting her name across the bottom of it. "Yes, we worked closely for several months before Marie's activation." She looked up at them and smiled a little in embarrassment. "She's so much younger than me, but she knows so much more about electronics and technology than I, and I'm the one who's teaching a class concerning it." She laughed nervously at the thought. "Isn't that funny?"

"Er, I suppose," Setsuna acknowledged. _Is she really as old as she looks?_ She seemed to vary in levels of maturity at times, and Setsuna hoped it was merely due to it still being summer vacation. _Although,_ she had to admit,_ if she's like this in class, at least It'll stay relatively interesting._

The conversation seemed to evaporate as Konoka's attention became slowly more focused on Marie who, in a sudden need to show off for his attentive new audience, had taken to teleporting small objects this way and that, floating upside down, and performing various other antics with which to draw a laugh from the chocolate-haired girl.

The swordswoman smiled to herself and sat back down in one of the chairs, contentedly watching Konoka, basking in her love's happiness. Fortunately, by the time Marie's antis began to get repetitive, Mizuho sat her pen down and smiled at the two. "Alright, that's all." As she began filing the papers back into the appropriate folders, the couple walked quickly to their original seats and shouldered their respective duffel bags and gathered at the door to the office. Arriving at the island itself had certainly brought to life the fact that they were indeed at a place that many only dreamed about, and that they were fully at the helm of their own lives. But being shown to their dorms, their homes for the next several years, was another step entirely. Setsuna silently prayed that they had been assigned the same dorm, having disliked being separated at Mahora Academy enough to last her for a decade or better.

"Are you girls ready?" Mizuho asked brightly as she rounded the desk, producing a key from a previously unnoticed pocket, Marie floating along behind her. The smile she wore betrayed the question as merely a ploy to increase their agitation and make them more excited, but the both of them feel prey to it regardless.

"Yes, Kusanagi-sensei!" Konoka returned enthusiastically, threading her arm through Setsuna's, affectionately resting her head on her shoulder, smiling. "Do you think me and Setsuna might have the same dorm room?" Her eyes were hopeful, and although her face was a bright red color, Setsuna too turned to look hopefully at the teacher.

Mizuho considered the question thoughtfully for a moment, then shrugged apologetically. "Well, I don't know. The process of dorm assignment is pretty random..." She stepped outside the room, holding the door open for Konoka and Setsuna, turning to lock it once they were out.

Konoka bit her lower lip and shook her head, despite knowing that Mizuho couldn't see her anyway. "No, we weren't the ones who actually did the applying. My grandfather did, and I don't know if he told them..." She trailed off worriedly, and Setsuna found her hand with her own and gave it a gentle squeeze of reassurance.

"If we have different dorm rooms, I'll just have to come visit, won't I?" She smiled at her love and saw her face light up a little at the reassuring prospect.

"Definitely!" Smiling again, Konoka pulled Setsuna along as Mizuho walked ahead of them, paying little attention to where they were, knowing the halls of the massive school by rote now. Setsuna, however, was careful to make note of the room numbers and labels on each of the doors. She knew she wouldn't remember them all, but it would be helpful in eventually learning the layout completely.

As they walked, Konoka and her new teacher carried idle conversation, most of which concerned Marie and his various habits, both good and bad, while Setsuna observed in silence, her arm linked with Konoka's. It didn't take long, though the distance seemed considerable, that they were once again outside the building. The sun had already passed its zenith in the sky and begun to wane, shadows lengthening slightly across the campus.

The swordswoman took a deep, experimental breath and sighed happily. _It smells like home. _The air was crisp and clean, even with the faint scent of the fire from a forge that had permeated the Shinmeiryuu's small establishment. Somewhere in her it registered as surprise that she was so relaxed in a new and potentially dangerous environment, and her sense of protection for Konoka began to reassert itself, much to the chagrin of her aesthetic side. A breeze wafted through the trees, masking her sigh with its own.

"It's beautiful, isn't it Secchan?" Setsuna looked down at the girl beside her to find her gazing at the surrounding trees with a peaceful expression on her pretty face, almost wistful as well.

"It is. It reminds me of home." Konoka looked up at her and frowned, drawing closer. She knew Setsuna better than Setsuna, in some respects, and heard something wrong in her voice.

She whimpered, knowing it would draw Setsuna's attention, and looked up at her curiously. "Then why are you so tense?" Mizuho wasn't paying direct attention to them, so Konoka brought her hand to rest on Setsuna's upper arm, squeezing lightly. "You're not relaxed at all."

Setsuna smiled down at her, perhaps a little sadly. _There are times I think she's psychic._ "I'm fine, Konoka. Just a bit uptight about being in a new place; that's all." Her love frowned skeptically, and Setsuna chuckled. "Really, nothing's wrong."

The Konoe heir still wasn't satisfied, but could tell from Setsuna's eyes that it was something Setsuna didn't wish to bother her with, and she decided to drop it until later, perhaps when they were alone. She tightened her grip on Setsuna's arm and rested her head against her shoulder, gazing out once more at the landscape.

The young Shinmeiryuu turned a bright scarlet when their teacher, still leading them to, apparently, the dorms looked back at them and smiled slightly at seeing them together as they were. _I was just getting used to being with Konoka with people we've known for years, and now we don't know anyone here..._ A sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach told her that things would be a little strained for a while, and it was her fault as usual. Even after the incident on White Valentine's day, she still had an aversion to affection in public, although she couldn't find a cause for it. She knew, and believed fully, that Konoka didn't care about her history, though she still didn't know all of it, and she herself didn't really care what her classmates thought, and yet still she turned red, still she panicked, and still she hurt Konoka with her inhibition.

_I really need to work on my self-control while I'm here._ It was her best chance in the last year or so to do so, seeing as how there were plenty of secluded places, no doubt, on an island such as this. It also seemed logical that some of what she learned would be useful in reigning her instincts back in. _Kono-chan deals with my shortcomings for now, but it may become too bothersome to her in the future._ She suppressed a shudder at the thought and clenched the hand Konoka hadn't attached herself to into a fist, vowing to force herself to work to improve their relationship.

Konoka gasped quietly as they came over top a hill overlooking the next several hundred meters of the campus. A river cut the green land from East to West, flowing at a gentle rate to the West, depositing the clean water from a lake at the base of the mountain several miles away. The water was a blue and pure as azure, clear enough that they could see the silt covered bed and the randomly grouped fish, none very large, that swam to and fro within it, unbothered by the current. A wide wooden bridge, constructed in the manner of Japan's middle ages spanned the distance with ease, seeming to meld into the scenery itself to appear natural.

Kusanagi Mizuho smiled proudly and pointed at the long wooden construct. "That bridge was one of the first things built here by the mages that founded the school. They say it's over 500 years old." Marie confirmed her statement with a wise looking nod and a "noh," before speeding up and soaring out over the water, dipping down to skim its surface, sending the fish scattering in fear. Mizuho started down the hill towards the bridge, trying to repress a chuckle and call Marie away from the fish. It was apparently a regular occurrence, Setsuna decided as Marie playfully skipped further along the water, chattering his single syllable in what seemed a taunting manner to the woman who merely laughed and ran along the bridge, following him as best she could.

Setsuna felt a tug on her arm, and she looked down to see Konoka grinning up at her. "We're gonna get left behind, Secchan." She tugged again, and with a laugh, the two broke into a run down the hill, following the path their new teacher had taken. The sound of their feet on the wooden planks of the bridge echoed beneath the structure, no doubt frightening more fish. Hand in blushing hand, they caught up to Mizuho. The taller woman was standing at the end of the bridge, one hand resting on one of the support posts, the other holding her hair in place. Marie floated behind her, demolishing a Prech absently as he floated back and forth. She gestured at the river and the mountains in the distance. "It's beautiful, isn't it?"

Both girls nodded, Konoka slightly breathless from her run, Setsuna not the least the worse for the wear. She brushed a lock of fiery hair from before her face and gazed off at the ocean, still visible on the horizon. "I hope you two like it here." She winked conspiratorially at them. "It's a perfect island for couples. Lots of secret little retreats." The couple looked at each other and both turned a cherry red, not meeting the woman's eyes again.

She took on a stern tone they had come to recognize already as her teaching voice and wagged a finger at them authoritatively. "But you didn't hear it from me. Public display of affection, according to the academy's official rules, must be limited to hand-holding and hugs." She looked around, as if looking for a spy, and smiled at them again. "Publicly."

Setsuna turned yet darker and Konoka laughed quietly, obvious understanding and thinking about what Mizuho had left unsaid. Her grip on Setsuna's arm tightened and pink tinted the chocolate-haired girls face once more. "We'll remember, Kusanagi-sensei."

She broke into a wide smile again. "Good! Now, I bet the two of you are tired of carrying your bags around the campus, so let's hurry on to the dorms, shall we?" They nodded in agreement, Konoka especially beginning to truly feel the weight of her luggage as she wasn't as strong, physically, as her companion.

The trio, plus Marie, slowed their pace back to a walk and started again towards the buildings that stood across the grassy field before them. Konoka recognized the vast open area as a massive courtyard, seeing as they approached that there were wooden benches beneath stands of trees and a wide fountain in the approximate middle. Around the courtyard stood three massive buildings, each nearly identical in construction.

At first glance, they seemed to have been taken directly from the Victorian Era of Europe, the graceful architecture seeming to fit in perfectly with the scenery. They had high vaulted windows and extended eaves, all painted a sky blue with pristine white trim. The only sign of modern technology were the uniform air conditioners that stuck several inches from the window of each dorm, although they were painted in such a way to be nearly invisible.

Mizuho led them around the edge of the first building, the one to the West, and stopped at the corner of the building, waiting for them to catch up. "I'm really sorry, girls, but I have to drop you off here."

She straightened and pointed along the front of the building to the rather spacious porch that extended from the walls in the middle. "If you go through the main door, you'll see a table set up with papers on it. There should be somebody there that can tell you what your room assignments are." She bowed again, Marie mimicking her. "I'd escort you if I could, but I have a date with my husband soon, and I don't want to miss that."

The both of them waved her apology off and returned the bow. "Thank you very much for leading us this far, Kusanagi-sensei," Konoka chirped, speaking for the both of them, Setsuna nodding behind her. The healer readjusted her duffel bag and smiled widely at her. "I hope you and your husband enjoy your date, Sensei."

Their teacher smiled back at her, her voice rising happily. "Thank you, Konoe-san. I'm sure we will." With a small wave and a mouthed "bye" she hurried off in the direction of a second, slightly smaller building, between the two large ones.

Konoka turned back to her love and smiled brightly. "Kusanagi-sensei really seems nice, doesn't she, Secchan?"

The student of Shinmeiryuu nodded, watching their teacher and her little floating friend retreat to the other building. She looked down at Konoka, and on a whim, leaned forward a little and kissed her nose, knowing there was no-one else about. "Let's go find our room."

The other girl nodded vigorously, a little tingle of delight running through her at her love's unexpected show of affection. "I can't wait to see what they look like!" Setsuna laughed as Konoka again took the lead, pulling her along by the hand towards the raised porch.

She jumped the steps in a single bound, her hand slipping from Setsuna's as she put more distance between them. Chuckling to herself, the swordswoman took the steps two at a time. "Hurry up, Secchan!" Konoka reached down and took her hand again, jerking her up the last three steps in her excited haste. The door was standing open and she'd been gazing through it while her love had been taking her time on the steps. "It looks so pretty, you've got to see it!"

Shaking her head an laughing, Setsuna walked faster to catch up with her. "I think you need a little self-control, Kono-chan," she muttered playfully as a blond girl looked up from behind a rather cheap looking table sitting in the middle of a cavernous room. The high ceiling held a painted relief of angels sitting amongst the clouds, and a single large chandelier hung down from the ceiling, illuminating the main room perfectly.

"Can I help you two girls?" The older student asked kindly, smiling at them cordially.

"Yes, could you please tell us our dorm room?" Konoka all but skipped up to the edge of the table, leaning over it to examine the papers as if hoping to find it herself.

Apparently the young woman was used to such behavior as she paid it no mind, merely flipping picking up a clipboard bearing what appeared to be a roster. "What are your names?"

Setsuna cleared her throat and stepped up beside Konoka, absently arranging Yuunagi better along her shoulder. "Konoe Konoka and Sakurazaki Setsuna, miss."

After several, seemingly long, seconds of flipping papers, the girl nodded victoriously. "I've got you right here." She looked up and grinned at them. "What a coincidence. I attended Mahora Academy for a year quite a while ago. Really nice place."

Konoka beamed at her but held in her need to tell her to hurry and divulge their room number and key. She seemed to get the point as she reached under the table and dug around in a small black box for several moments. Muttering an "aha" she produced two keys and held them out. "Konoe-san, your room is 202, and Sakurazaki-san, yours is 257."

They both looked blankly at the keys, then up at the girl, hoping they'd misheard. "They're not the same room," Konoka inquired, sounding deflated.

The attendant blinked and looked back at the papers before her, double-checking first their names, then their numbers, and finally the numbers on the keys themselves. "I'm sorry, they're not." The hand that held the two keys moved a little, shaking them enticingly.

Neither of the girls spared them a glance, and Setsuna instead stepped up to the side of the table, resting one hand on its surface, looking at the girl with a pleading expression. "Is there no way we could get them rearranged so that we may share a room, or at least neighboring room?

The answering head shake was immediate, and almost a little annoyed. _They ALWAYS ask that..._ the girl thought, wondering why people couldn't just deal with setbacks and move on. Perhaps it was merely because she'd never had a significant other of any sort and merely didn't understand. Or it was perhaps because she just didn't care. "I'm afraid the sorting into rooms is random and cannot be changed unless it's for medical or emergency reasons."

Konoka's shoulders slumped forward a good deal, her duffel bag swinging around to knock the table, but she didn't notice. "Are you sure?"

The blond girl nodded, rolling her eyes. "Yes, Konoe-san, I'm sure." Again, she shook the keys slightly, and Setsuna all but snatched them from her.

"Thank you, miss," she said politely as she tugged Konoka off to the side with her free hand. "Come on, Kono-chan," she murmured, understanding full well the disappointment she felt. In silence, the couple walked across the cavern-like room to the other side where a double-staircase led up to the second floor and likely continued on to the third and fourth floors.

Setsuna wrapped an arm around her shoulders and squeezed inconspicuously, choosing her words carefully. "It's not all bad, Kono-chan." She held the keys out. "They're the same floor, at least."

The healer nodded and took the key labeled "202" from Setsuna, turning it over in her small hands. "Yeah, that's true..." She smiled up at Setsuna and leaned in closer to her. "You'll just have to come over all the time then, Secchan."

She nodded, pocketing her own key. "Of course, Kono-chan." Still holding the smaller girl, Setsuna started up the steps, not letting the unfortunate setback weigh on her mood too much. The heavy carpeting was a little odd to the two, as they were used to thinner carpet or wood floors most of the time, and Setsuna decided she disliked the overly springy, slightly unstable feel. Reaction times would be slowed by a good eighth of a second at the least.

The stairs twisted around, separating in either direction, meeting at a landing that opened up to a long hallway, doors on either side. The numbers emblazoned on the doors confirmed the first number on their rooms corresponded to the floor. To their immediate left, the door with "201" on the little bronze plate stood slightly ajar, and there were sounds of stuff being moved around coming from within. _Must be another student,_ Setsuna decided, hearing a drawer slide closed with a muffled bang.

She looked to the left and saw that, as she'd expected, door 202 was closed, no sliver of light coming from beneath it. "How nice, Kono-chan; yours is right next to the stairs." She stuck her tongue out playfully at the other girl, hoping to cheer her up a little bit more.

Konoka made a face back at her and released her hold on her arm, stepping up to the door, key in hand. "But that means I have to hear all the people who come tromping up and down the stairs. You're nice and secluded, I bet."

_Well, that'd be nice._ The swordswoman preferred seclusion, and it would be a nice change after how tumultuous her time at Mahora Academy had become. She stood behind Konoka, looking anxiously over her shoulder as she worked the key into the lock, turning it until a click sounded that the mechanism was successfully tripped.

Konoka looked back at Setsuna and smiled before turning the door handle and pushing forward. It swung open easily and both girls peered inside.

The room wasn't especially large, though small was certainly the wrong word for it. It extended nearly twenty feet outwards, ending with a wall empty except for a single large window overlooking the courtyard. On either side of the door was a wooden dresser tall enough to reach Konoka's shoulder, containing four drawers each. Several feet back from the dressers were identical beds, the tops of the mattresses coming to about waist height on Setsuna. The frame was wrought of pine, it appeared, and the mattress looked to be extremely soft based on its thickness and the way its own weight caused a small depression in the center of the bed. The sheets were the same color as their uniforms, although they were not of the same slightly coarse material, instead made of much softer cotton with a thick white comforter atop them. At the foot of each bed sat a wooden roll-top desk with a wheeled computer chair sitting just under the edge of each.

The carpet, much to Setsuna's chagrin, was the same as that of the rest of the building, although it felt nice when she took her shoes off to step into the room, despite it not being Japanese style. Gazing around, a look of wonder in her dark eyes, Konoka laid her duffel bag on the bed that sat on the wall against the stairwell. "This one's mine," she stated as she peered around the room, taking stock of what she couldn't see from the doorway.

Setsuna, not being able to set her stuff down, immediately proceeded to a door to the immediate left of the entrance between the unclaimed bed and dresser. "Is this a closet?"

Konoka shrugged as she began opening drawers in the desk at the foot of her bed, checking out how much space she had to store her school stuff. "I guess so. It could be a bathroom too."

The swordswoman nodded her ascent at the idea and twisted the handle, pushing it open to gaze curiously inside. "You were right, Kono-chan. It's a bathroom. She looked behind the open door and whistled low in appreciation. "And a nice one at that."

"Oh?" Curious, Konoka skipped back between the beds and stood on her tiptoes, peering over Setsuna's shoulder at the bathroom. The floor was linoleum, as one may expect, white to match the walls and pristinely clean. A toilet sat along the wall to the left, with a shower/bath module just beyond that, nearer to a door on the opposite side of the wall than their own. Opposite the toilet and bath were two marble sinks, complete with toiletries arrayed beside each; enough for a total of four people.

Konoka pushed past her love into the bathroom and ran her hands across the smooth, nearly reflective surface of the marble sinks, her eyes wide. "Wow, this is really really nice! I've only seen marble in really expensive hotels!"

Setsuna frowned and nodded, taking stock of the soaps and other items lining the tops beneath an expansive mirror. "Makes me wonder how much your grandfather had to pay for this..."

"Oh, Secchan, don't think about any of that stuff," Konoka huffed as she put her hands against Setsuna's shoulders and pushed her back into the main room. "You're already here, so don't worry, okay?" She stepped up closer to her love and looped her arms loosely over her shoulder, toying with the ponytail on the left side of her head.

The swordswoman turned a light shade of pink at how close the marginally younger girl was getting, becoming distinctly aware of the proximity of her lips. Setsuna wrapped an arm around Konoka's waist and gently pulled her a little closer against her, bending her head to capture the other girl's lips with her own, though only for an instant.

"Feel better, Secchan?" Konoka asked, her voice softened by the kiss as much as her heart was. The taller girl nodded and didn't relinquish her hold on her. The healer sighed happily and rested her head against Setsuna's chest, closing her eyes. _We made it. We're here, together, to learn magic. It kinda happened fast, but, _she tangled her fingers in Setsuna's ponytail again, _I'm glad._

They stood there for several seconds more until the open door caught the swordswoman's eye and, turning redder, she reluctantly let go of the chocolate haired girl in her arms, stepping back a little and readjusting her duffel bag on her shoulder, beginning to find its weight uncomfortable. Konoka looked at the door and understanding dawned on her. She smiled a little sadly and placed a hand in the small of Setsuna's back, gently pushing her towards the hallway. "C'mon, Secchan. Let's go find your room."

The lack of spark in her love's voice echoed in Setsuna's ears, nearly making her wince, but there was little she could do except kick herself mentally for it. _Why can't I stop myself from doing that? I've been trained in how to maximize my control over the mind, but every damn time I think someone will see Kono-chan and I together like that, I freeze up!_ She shook her head, sighing as well, and forced a smile at Konoka as she was forced from the room. "Sure."

The both of them slipped their shoes back on and stepped outside, Konoka closing the door and locking it behind her, as much to simply do it because it was hers as it was to protect her things. Setsuna saw, instantly, that the door across the hallway was closed and its lights off. _She probably DID see me and Kono-chan like that..._ She managed to catch her train of thought and halfway derail it before it could go further. _But she could've left when we were looking at the bathroom too, and not seen anything..._

She jumped slightly when Konoka again looped her arm through hers, tugging her gently down the hall towards the opposite end. "Is everything alright, Secchan?" She peered worriedly up at her, her dark eyes begging her for an answer.

"Just excited, I guess," Setsuna stated, smiling down at her, not caring whether it was the entire truth or not. She didn't want Konoka to know of yet more of her stupid jumps to the wrong conclusions or bouts of unnatural nervousness. Konoka nodded in understanding and tugged harder. With a small laugh, Setsuna sped up to match the now unencumbered girl.

"245, 247, 249, 251," Konoka counted off the doors as they made their way down the hall, watching the side opposite Konoka's room. "253, 255, 257." She stopped short, letting go of her swordswoman's arm. Setsuna dug around in her pocket for the key, producing it with a grunt and holding it up to the door as if verifying that the numbers matched.

With much ado, she inserted the key into the lock and twisted it, feeling the latch give as she did so. She popped it back out and easily opened the door. As Konoka's had been, there were no lights on, but this room's blinds were drawn, casting almost complete darkness throughout it. Her well-trained eyes adjusted almost immediately and focused on the bed nearest the bathroom.

A lump stretched most of the length of the bed beneath the blue covers, and a lump of unkempt azure hair rested on the pillow. The raven-haired girl winced when the sleeping woman flipped over in her sleep, mumbling something loudly and reaching out blindly for something or someone in her sleep. She suppressed a chuckle and stepped inside, quietly laying her bag on the bed and standing Yuunagi respectfully against the head of the wooden structure.

Konoka stepped in warily, her eyes on the other, unnoticing, occupant, trying to be sure not to wake her. "You've already got a roommate, it seems," she whispered to the girl beside, her though it was an obvious statement.

With a frown, Setsuna swept a rather spacious bra from the foot of her bed and surveyed the room, not liking what she saw. "And not a very cleanly one." Perhaps from her upbringing as a child of Shinmeiryuu, she was not at all fond of clutter. She'd had few things to spread around her room, as did all others who lived in the village, and she'd become used to keeping few things, and keeping them organized. Konoka was mildly messy, but not more so than most people, and Setsuna didn't particularly mind. This woman appeared to be quite the opposite.

Konoka giggled as the swordswoman began moving articles of clothing and other miscellaneous items from what was now her side of the room over a clearly defined invisible line to the other side. "I don't mind so long as she keeps it out of my way..."

The healer ventured a little further in, peering around, curiously trying to glean as much information as she could about Setsuna's roommate from the surroundings. She barely stopped herself from crying out as her foot slipped on a hard cylindrical object on the floor. She windmilled her arms to keep her balance and the object skittered across the floor, ricocheting off the sleeping woman's bed frame. Setsuna was, without a sound, at her side, a curious and worried look on her normally stern face. "What happened?"

She brushed several strands of loose hair out of her eyes and pointed down at the floor. "I'm not sure. I slipped on something." She bent and peered under the edge of the bed, then reached out, bravely in Setsuna's opinion, and fished around for whatever it was that had nearly tripped her. Her hand closed around the cold hard surface of what she thought it was, and she nodded in confirmation when she pulled an empty bottle out into the low light.

Setsuna raised an eyebrow and took it from her. There was no label, so she quickly passed the mouth beneath her nose and grimaced in disgust. "It's alcohol." She dropped the bottle into the nearly full trash can she found tucked under the edge of the other occupant's desk, seeing several more of the glass containers within it. "And she drinks a lot of it, I'll venture..."

Konoka made a face and walked a wider path around the other woman in her haste to back to Setsuna. "Is there a rule against drinking here?" She slipped an arm through Setsuna's once more and looked at the number of bottles in the can and around it.

The swordswoman thought back to what little she remembered of the rules and shrugged. "I don't remember, honestly. I would think so. It IS a school after all..."

"Maybe the dorms are special?" Konoka cocked her head in thought, also hearkening back to her set of rules, trying to remember if the student lodging hosted a different set of rules.

Again, the swordswoman shrugged and turned around, Konoka still on her arm, and passed back through the two foot space between the two identical beds. She nearly leapt out of her skin when the azure-haired woman who they had thought to be asleep suddenly sat up in her bed, her back ramrod straight, staring blearily at the closed blinds, Konoka latched tightly onto Setsuna's arm in surprise.

Slowly, as if her mind was processing at half speed, Setsuna's roommate turned to blink at the startled girls. "Who're you?"

The smell of alcohol floated strongly across the small space to the hanyou, and she coughed, wrinkling her nose in disgust. "Most regrettably, I am your roommate." The other woman blinked once more, then nodded as the sentence began to make sense through her hazy mind.

"Well, that's nice, isn't it?" She smiled widely and raised her arms into the air invitingly. "We're gonna have a great time, roomie." She reached beneath her pillow and pulled out another bottle, holding it out to Setsuna with a sly grin.

"I've got some liquor if you want any." She grinned and folded her legs in the manner of an Indian, stretching back with a groan, seeming very catlike. "It's real good stuff."

"No thank you," Setsuna replied stonily, her arm tensing in order to draw Konoka slightly closer to her, her eyes not leaving the woman in the bed. "If we're going to be roommates, please tell me what your name is."

The long, azure-haired woman pouted and looked at the bottle, then decided it shouldn't go to waist and twisted the top off, grinning when the small "pop" that indicated it was open echoed in the room. "The name's Ryoko," she stated in a slightly clearer voice after gulping down a third of the bottle in a single swig. The liquid seemed to actually throw off the effects of her previous amount, much to Setsuna's wonder.

The woman looked back at the two and peered curiously at them. "What about you guys? Who're you?"

"I'm Sakurazaki Setsuna, and this is Konoe Konoka," the swordswoman answered immediately. In truth, she was a little surprised at the aura the young woman radiated. She obviously possessed strong magic, and her eyes were sharp when they weren't blurred with liquor. Her voice was strong and confident, somehow managing to seem like someone else's and fit her perfectly.

She stood up and bowed in a half-attentive manner. "Nice to meet you." She stood up and flicked her hair back over her shoulder. "Sorry if the room's a mess." She winked conspiratorially at the two. "I wasn't expecting company. For the last two years, I've been lucky enough not to have a roommate."

She looked blankly around the room, then frowned. "Ryo-ohki! Come on out and stop hiding." She placed her hands on her hips and glared around the room. "I know you're in here!"

The chocolate-haired healer blinked and looked around. "Who's she talking to, Secchan?" she whispered up to the slightly taller girl.

Setsuna opened her mouth to respond and nearly, once again, jumped out of her skin. A small brown lump launched itself from beneath the covers of her bed and attached itself to her skirt. She managed to suppress the urge to hurl it across the room and instead peered down at it curiously.

"It's so cute, Secchan!" Konoka squealed in delight, kneeling to examine the small furry creature attached to her girlfriend's clothes. The swordswoman didn't respond, silently asking whatever powers may be why she was subjected to such on a regular basis. The small animal, in turn, only looked up at her with large golden eyes, one ear twitching randomly.

Ryoko crouched down beside Konoka and, scowling, pulled the little thing from Setsuna's skirt by the nape of its neck, glaring at it. "Now that's not a very good way to greet your new roommate, Ryo-ohki. Where'd you get the idea to attack her?" She shook the little animal slightly. "Huh?"

Konoka looked worriedly from the animal to the seemingly angry woman, to Setsuna, wondering if it was healthy for the little thing, apparently Ryo-ohki, to be shaken like so. With a world weary sigh, Ryoko dropped the brown bundle of fur to the ground, shaking her head and replacing her hands on her hips.

"She's so impossible, sometimes. Sorry 'bout that, really." She fixed a glare on Ryo-ohki as she once again gravitated to the swordswoman, brushing affectionately against her ankle.

"No, it's okay," Setsuna assured her, watching the furry animal with a hint of surprise. Many animals were naturally frightened by her aura and massive amount of Ki, but Ryo-ohki either didn't notice it, or perhaps because of Ryoko, was simply used to such a thing.

Waving her hand dismissively over her shoulder, the well endowed woman turned around and flopped back down on her bed, not caring that part of the alcohol in the bottle she still held sloshed out onto the covers and onto her loose t-shirt.

"If she bothers ya too much, just gimme a yell." She sat the bottle by her pillow and stretched with a yawn. "I kinda stayed up late last night, so if you'll excuse me I'm gonna try to go back to sleep."

There was almost a hinting quality to her voice, but both Konoka and Setsuna dismissed it, although her personality seemed to the type that would do that. The swordswoman nodded and picked Yuunagi back up, trying not to trip over the animal, cabbit, as she did so. Cabbits, the unofficial name of the species, were a rather are breed of rabbit, looking more like they were crossbred with a cat than a pure rabbit. Generally two-toned, they have long tufted ears and a small rabbit-like tail. Few have escaped into the Outer World, being called an incarnation of "Carbuncle" when they did, though it's been long forgotten what Carbuncle was, or even where it originated from.

"Are we leaving, Secchan?" Konoka whispered, mindful of the apparently temperamental woman in the bed at her side.

Setsuna nodded an affirmative and slung Yuunagi over her shoulder, gathering the plastic bag that held the remains of their lunch in one hand and the nape of Ryo-ohki's neck in the other. The adorably little animal cocked her head at Setsuna and mewed softly. With a grimace, Setsuna relaxed her hold and sat the animal hesitantly on her shoulder.

"Come on, let's not bother your owner." There was a slightly acidic tint to her voice, but she suspected the rowdy woman had already fallen back asleep.

Konoka giggled at the site of the little animal on Setsuna's shoulder, curiously licking her ear. A red blush covered Setsuna's face and she murmured an excuse about not liking the way Ryoko treats her, and that it would be cruel to leave her in her company. Konoka stepped out the doorway as her love motioned, still chuckling quietly to herself. _Secchan really is perfect. I didn't know animals took to her so quickly, but she still tries to keep up a tough exterior._

Silently, Setsuna strode back down the hallway, trying to ignore the little warm spot on her shoulder. She could see, easily enough, that there was something Konoka liked about the cabbit getting attached to her, and was secretly considering keeping Ryo-ohki around, even if just for the sake of Konoka's amusement. There were more girls in the hallway now, they found, though none of them stopped them to talk, rather to the swordswoman's relief.

They threaded through the thin crowd with ease, their sights set on the healer's dorm room. Konoka, grinning at the newness of her room, stepped in front of her girlfriend and unlocked the door quickly, finding to her disappointment that her own roommate, assuming she had one, hadn't arrived yet. Setsuna walked in after her, chuckling to herself when Ryo-ohki immediately leapt from her shoulder to the empty bed opposite Konoka's, walking in very deliberate circles before settling into a small brown lump in the middle of the pillow.

Konoka collapsed onto her bed, smiling widely, and flopped backwards on it, her arms spread eagle. "Isn't this great, Secchan? We've got our rooms, our supplies, you have a roommate and," she nodded at the now sleeping bundle of fur, "a new little friend."

Setsuna mocked a grimace and sat lightly beside her love, her gaze flicking momentarily to the door to see for sure that it was closed. She sat the bag down by the pillow and lay down on her side, facing Konoka. "Yeah, I suppose it's all pretty good except my roommate." She jokingly made a face as she reached one hand out to mess idly with the other girl's chocolate locks. "I don't know how well we're gonna get along."

The Konoe heir laughed and rolled over to face Setsuna, smiling when she blushed at noticing their closeness. "Just think, if I never get a roommate, you can be over here all the time." She snuggled closer, trying to contain her laugh at her girlfriend's growing blush.

"I was just thinking that myself, Kono-chan," Setsuna stated, her voice a little lower than usual. Konoka's heart sped up at the sound, finding that it had the odd effect of raising her inner temperature.

Konoka wriggled yet closer, raising one hand to brush a strand of hair from Setsuna's eyes, smiling a smile rarely seen at her.

"Do you know what I'm thinking right now, Kono-chan?" _Oh she's gonna smack me so hard for this..._

Konoka's heart beat faster yet again and she moved closer, kissing Setsuna's hand as she drew it from her hair, achingly away from her. "What's that, Secchan?" A blush was beginning to show on both of their faces, proof that the mood was becoming powerful for both.

Not really expecting an answer, Konoka leaned in slightly further, feeling her eyelids droop as she got closer, ready for the kiss she was sure would come. Suddenly the bed shifted and she opened her eyes, blinking in confusion. "I'm thinking we should finish this food before it goes bad," her girlfriend stated in something a little closer to her normal voice, now sitting normally on the edge of the bed with the bag of food in her hand.

Her heart was thundering in her ears, and blood was rushing through her with extreme speed, fast enough she could feel her fingers pulsing with every beat. _God that was difficult to pull away from..._ She had wanted so much for their lips to meet and to reach out and draw Konoka's soft body closer, hold her tight, and remind her who would protect her always, but the moment had been too perfect to resist throwing her love a curveball as she so rarely did.

As Konoka sat up, disappointment weighing heavily on her features, the cabbit awakened at the smell of food and bounded from its bed to Konoka's, brushing happily against Setsuna's back, mewing its want for something edible. "You're cruel, Secchan," the healer stated simply as she scooted next to the swordswoman, their legs touching, and took her lunchbox from the other girl's hand.

Setsuna grinned at her, beginning to feel the effects of their earlier closeness fading so that she had total control back. "They say surprise is an important part of every relationship."

Konoka blinked then chuckled softly to herself as she arranged her chopsticks in her hand so they were more comfortable. "Never become a relationship counselor, Secchan."


	5. Friendly Confrontation

**_Disclaimer: We've already taken a big risk by adding a new series into this mess alone, and we don't want to risk further injury by claiming them illegally. GracefulShippy from Pokemon Special is great, but Aerial Aces and Water Pulses are not._**

_ChibiSecchan: ((Happily feeds her philosophy notes to a Mareep)) You know, the series that we've endured the largest amount of attacks for is debuting in this chapter!_

_Okashira: ((Wrings out his jacket, still soaked after a Water Pulse.)) The characters introduced here are gonna be pretty important in the time to come, so take a good look at 'em._

_ChibiSecchan: Important not only in the aspect of the damage they caused... ((Sighs in relief that her Konoka poster is still in one piece after those Aerial Aces))_

_Okashira: But important for the effect they'll have on our Kono-chan and Secchan. Though Secchan may surprise you all a bit in this chapter..._

_ChibiSecchan: Poor girl, she's still being haunted by the ghost of her past..._

_Okashira: ((Laughs.)) She has better places to put her money anyway._

_ChibiSecchan: Like we should have known better to "challenge" the gym leaders?_

_Okashira: Ah, but the wounds will be well worth it! Besides, we'll be fine until they start to gang up on us...((Gulps.))_

_**Gradual Changes Book 01 – Newer Bits of Life**_

**_Chapter 05 Friendly Confrontation_**

_**By OkashiraShinomori and ChibiSecchan**_

"But you can use the money, right? Konoemon-san forwarded a letter to me from a Tatsumiya Mana-san. Something about a rather substantial debt...**"– Saehara Noriko**

Setsuna rapped lightly on the wooden door to Konoka's dorm room, her eyes darting suspiciously up and down the hallway to be sure that she wasn't disturbing anyone else. At 0930, it was still rather early for a school that wasn't in session. She heard a muffled response from inside, and within a few seconds, the door opened, revealing her girlfriend, only half-dressed, hurriedly motioning her inside.

Turning a brilliant shade of pink, the swordswoman stepped inside, the brown and white bundle of fur that had become attached to her steadfastly on her heels, trying her hardest to keep her eyes on something other than Konoe Konoka.

"Good morning, Secchan," the chocolate-haired girl greeted cheerily as she closed the door, taking no notice of her current attire.

She turned back around to face the hanyou, smiling with her usual brightness as she began buttoning her shirt. Setsuna gulped and forced her eyes to roam about the wall to her left while simultaneously trying to ignore the insistent pawing on her ankle. "Good morning, Kono-chan."

The healer slipped a loose white jacket over her shoulders and buttoned it halfway up with ease, peering around the room for forgotten articles. "Did you sleep okay?"

The raven-haired girl chuckled, managing to raise a curious eyebrow from the other girl. "I slept okay once my roommate finished her argument with 'Ayeka.'" She placed a strange stress on the name, and Konoka cocked her head.

"I thought after curfew, no-one was allowed to leave or enter rooms." She was clearly puzzled.

Setsuna chuckled a little bit again and nodded. "Precisely. Whoever this 'Ayeka' is, Ryoko dreamt about arguing with her." Her visage darkened. "For several hours. About some guy named 'Tenchi,' too, if that rings any bells."

Konoka's brow furrowed, but she decided quickly it wasn't important and merely laughed. "Sounds like you're gonna have a very interesting first year, Secchan," she teased as she rummaged through her yet unpacked thing of miscellaneous clothes, one lip caught between her teeth as she searched.

An eyebrow raised in curiosity, Setsuna stepped closer and peered over her shoulder. She opened her mouth to ask what she was looking for when her girlfriend stood up abruptly, a small mutter of "aha" giving evidence to having found what she sought. Laughing, the swordswoman stumbled back to avoid being hit by the mass of silky brown hair as the Konoe heir stood.

The healer held a royal blue ribbon, matching the color and texture of their uniforms, out to the Setsuna. "Do you think this'd look okay in my hair today, Secchan?"

After a very brief moment's silent consideration, the swordswoman nodded. "I suppose." She personally preferred the other girl's hair to be free, but it certainly looked nice any way she decided to wear it.

Her smile at Setsuna's 'permission' to put her hair up reinforced the taller girl's assuredness that it was a good decision, and she dropped the strip of cloth into the other girl's hands. "Would you please put it up? I know you like it better down, so I'll let you pick the style."

_She knows me too well,_ Setsuna thought as she waited for Konoka to turn around before gently gathering the waterfall of soft strands into one hand. With a thoughtful hum, she decided she would try something a little different, although she wasn't confident in her fashion sense, and carefully tied the richly colored ribbon at the nape of her girlfriends neck, rather lower than normal.

"How's that, Kono-chan?"

She craned her neck around to try to see it, ignoring Setsuna's laughter at the comedic motion, and nodded when she caught sight of her loosely bound hair.

"Thanks, Secchan!" Not waiting for a reply, she once again all but dove into her duffel bag, this time pulling the thick sheaf of papers that they'd received more than a week ago with their acceptance papers. She flipped through them quickly, setting aside the folded map of the campus, a map of the quality that very few universities would offer, and the list of classes that included their respective room numbers.

She stopped and looked back apologetically at Setsuna. She'd planned on exploring the campus, but she'd not thought to ask the other girl. "Um, can we explore the school today, Secchan?"

Smiling slightly, the swordswoman held up her own copy of the class list. "I thought you might want to, so I came prepared."

Konoka smiled broadly, once more awed by how well Setsuna seemed to be able to predict and cater to her whims on a regular basis. Stuffing her smaller packet of papers into an inside pocket of her jacket, Konoka picked Ryo-ohki up and held her out to Setsuna. "Is she allowed to come with us, Secchan?"

The swordswoman looked ruefully at the little animal, receiving only a cocked head and a soft "mew" in return. She opened her mouth to reluctantly refuse when, seemingly randomly, Konoka did the same, copying even the little animal's pitch perfectly. _Wow...that's REALLY cute,_ Setsuna noticed with an unconscious smile. Konoka noticed her change of mood immediately and bounced on her heels, grinning triumphantly.

"Yay! Thank you, Secchan!" Without asking permission, she plopped the little bundle of fur on top of Setsuna's head, giggling as she struggled for footing, finally finding some against her girlfriend's ponytail.

Setsuna merely blinked in surprise, trying to move her head in order to help Ryo-ohki keep her balance out of instinct. "That," she mocked a glare at Konoka and reached up to take gentle hold of the cabbit, "was not what I had in mind." Still smiling a half-smile, she sat her roommate's familiar on her shoulder where she immediately curled up, her tail wrapping around Setsuna's neck and tickling her other ear. She shivered at the odd feeling, ignoring Konoka's giggles.

A small growl of annoyance caused both Setsuna and Konoka to pause on their way to the door and peer curiously at Ryo-ohki. She had wrapped her small mouth around the side of Yuunagi's hilt, growling and biting as best she could on it.

Konoka giggled again, "I think your sword's making her uncomfortable, Secchan," she stated, laughing when her girlfriend flashed her a sarcastic "Oh you think so?" look before carefully removing her beloved blade from her shoulder and affixing it to her belt.

She preferred to keep it over her shoulder as its length caused the very end to drag the ground at times if she had it at her waist, but it appeared there would be no compromising with their sharp, though tiny, toothed companion. The change seemed to appease the cute creature and she settled back down, burying her nose in her paws. Still giggling to herself, Konoka followed Setsuna back into the hall, slipping their shoes on with practiced ease.

Setsuna stood patiently off to the side, gazing around the hallway, as she waited for Konoka to turn off the lights and lock the door of her dorm room before starting down the wide stairway. The Konoe heir took them two-at-a-time excitedly, prompting a small grin from her girlfriend who descended them at a more normal pace. The woman who had been in the lobby the day before was, surprisingly, already at her post once more, quietly reading a book, her feet propped upon the table-top comfortably.

Konoka suppressed a giggle at her lax attitude and with a startled blink the woman put her feet back on the floor and cleared her throat in an authoritative manner.

"Good morning, ladies." She sat her book on the table and gazed at them. "Anything I can help you with this morning?"

"I don't think so, no," Setsuna answered with a polite nod at her, taking gentle hold of her girlfriend's elbow and steering her towards the already wide-open doors, knowing she'd involve herself in some sort of trivial conversation and they'd be in the lobby until lunch time.

Konoka waved goodbye as she was lightly steered outside onto the wide porch. It overlooked the grounds to the west, including the mountain at the other side of the island. The sun was still low in the sky and cast the shadow of the building far into the courtyard, plunging the couple into relative darkness. "I think we should take a look at the map first so we know where we're going," Setsuna ventured logically, stepping down the steps, then seating herself on the edge of the porch,

Her girlfriend nodded and plopped down beside her, eagerly looking at the map the swordswoman held in her hands. The campus itself was of medium size, though judging by the dorms it was larger than average. The map showed a heavy concentration of buildings, both academic and residential, in the area they currently sat.

Across the river in the direction they'd come from the night before were three buildings that served as the main school buildings. Their classes were, for the most part, in one of those three buildings, going by the room numbers and their corresponding places on the map. In the middle of the three buildings lay a smaller, slightly more elongated building labeled as the Sports Center. A track-like area lay between it and the river, green grass surrounding it.

The food court, Setsuna noted hungrily, was arrayed before them on their side of the river. It appeared as if it contained several outdoor cafes as well as a couple larger, more refined looking, places to dine. The little schedule off to the side of the map noted that the food court opened at 0800 with three separate places serving breakfast.

Deciding that would be their first destination, Setsuna folded her map and schedule, hoping Konoka hadn't been involved too much in comparing the two, and slid them into one of the many pockets in her skirt, one that her love had picked out on their first 'real' date. "Are you hungry, Kono-chan?"

She stood and blushed as her girlfriend slid her arms around her left and stepped closer. "What do you think?" Konoka giggled when Setsuna blinked at her response, then nodded.

"Yeah, stupid question, huh?" The young healer nodded, still smiling, and allowed Setsuna to lead her down the steps onto the grassy lawn. The turf was springy beneath their shoes, and obviously well cared for. Flowers lined the foundation of their dorm as well as the one that stood opposite it, presumably the boys'.

Trees littered the courtyard except where the fountain stood, surrounded by cobblestone for several meters in a perfect circle around it. As they strode across the grassy lawn, Konoka sighed, not out of sadness or despair, but in contentment. She stood in the middle of the most wondrous place she'd yet imagined on the planet, a place where she could learn to use what was her birthright and to understand a thus far mysterious part of herself. Literally in her arms was the warm presence of the girl she loved, far less reserved than she had been even a year ago when she would have been literally shadowing her at a distance. She still had a flight instinct when she was surprised with her, and being too affectionate clearly made her nervous, but she was beginning to break through that shield.

Atop that, they were guaranteed a continued existence together, seeing each other often and on a daily basis as they were before, her fears of being split up dispelled entirely. An added bonus revealed itself in the presence of her once-friend Kumiko, whom she had almost totally forgotten from her past.

Smiling softly to herself, Konoka nuzzled the arm of her love, bringing a cherry blush to her cheeks and an annoyed mew from the slightly disturbed animal on her shoulder. "I love you, Secchan..."

The swordswoman blinked and gulped down most of her initial panicky response at such a public declaration, though she couldn't help that her blush deepened yet more. No-one else was in sight but at the food courts, and she bowed her head to the side, whispering "I love you too, Kono-chan." Her love's smile widened, and the raven-haired girl felt a little pride well within her at pleasing the smaller girl so.

In what was, for her, an audacious move, she pulled Konoka slightly closer as they stepped onto the outermost edge of the food court's paved territory, their shoes clicking meticulously in the otherwise silent atmosphere.

Konoka lifted her head and looked around curiously, sniffing. "Something really smells good..." The other girl gazed about as well, finding the scent of pancakes to be as alluring as did Konoka, and tried to pinpoint the source.

With a grunt of success, she motioned at a small stand along the outside edge of the court. A single elderly man attended it, messing with a fryer of some sort while a small group of four or five crowded around it impatiently. "I guess he's the one making pancakes, if that's what you're referring to."

"Pancakes! That's what that smell is!" Her girlfriend shaking her head in amusement, Konoka pulled her along excitedly towards the relatively busy food stand. As they neared it and its gathered customers, Setsuna felt herself become apprehensive, seemingly without a cause.

Her eyes searched the small crowd for something out of the ordinary that might cause it, but found nothing. _I've only felt...something this strong among members of the Shinmeiryuu, or Kono-chan's father, or the Headmaster..._ It was definitely the Ki of one who was assured of their strength, and likely as powerful as they believed themselves to be. Unconsciously, she raised her right hand to rest on Konoka's intertwined arms.

Using one of her relatively newer skills, she tried to narrow her examination of the group's Ki to individuals, and quickly dismissed the vast majority of them. After careful consideration of another, she decided he was not the source either. Just as they stepped into the line, she decided that the producer of the powerful aura had to be the only armed girl among the group besides herself.

She stood slightly taller than Setsuna, though she had the same raven-hued hair, pulled back into a single long braid. A pair of cobalt-rimmed glasses served only to enhance her natural, somehow mysterious, air of beauty and self-assured power. A sword not unlike Yuunagi aside from its shorter length hung at her side, and by the ease with which she moved, it was obvious she was used to its presence and weight.

The girl looked over at her as if sensing her scrutiny and blinked, recognizing Setsuna's own, equal, Ki. Setsuna came to a stop at the back of the line although Konoka, having not noticed what her companion had, tried to keep going and was pulled up short.

She looked up at Setsuna and followed her gaze to the other dark-haired girl. "Is that someone you know, Secchan?"

It took her a moment to recognize that the smaller girl had spoken, and when she moved her gaze to look down at her, the other swordswoman stepped out of line, off into the forest of seats and tables. Setsuna allowed her eyes to follow her for a moment before her gaze switched to a brown-haired young man not far behind her, holding two plates of pancakes upon a tray, apparently following her. The young man stepped up as they reached the table that was apparently their destination and pulled a chair from beneath the table with his free hand in a gentlemanly manner.

The dark haired young woman seemed not to notice, seating herself in a chair beside that one, glancing once more back at Setsuna. As the young man sat one of the plates before the sword-bearing girl, the student of Shinmeiryuu looked back down at Konoka and smiled a small apologetic smile. "Ah, no, I've never seen her before. She just...drew my attention."

Konoka cocked her to the side, puzzled by the odd tone to her voice, and quashed the illogical feeling of jealousy that threatened to rear up within her. "Oh, I see..." She was quiet as they waited for the line to shorten, as was Setsuna beside her, overwhelmed with curiosity about the other swordswoman.

_If she were of Shinmeiryuu, her sword would bear an inscription like Yuunagi's, but if she's not of Shinmeiryuu, there are few other sword schools that would allow her, only slightly older than me, to register such individual power..._ An odd sense of curiosity smoldered within her as she wondered how her own skills would compare to those of the seemingly older girl. She was not one to enjoy fighting, but to protect what she wanted to always be able to protect, it was necessary that she keep her sword and skills sharp. Tsukuyomi had been a good practice partner, and Asuna had just begun to get the skills necessary for Setsuna to actually gain from their practices, but for the most part the swordswoman was without truly constructive mock combat to hone her skills with. And being rejected by the Shinmeiryuu didn't afford her a great many contacts from whom to draw from.

While her love pondered to herself, Konoka ordered them each an order of pancakes, hers with blueberry in the batter, knowing Setsuna would prefer plain, and decided to take the opportunity to pay for her girlfriend's meal for once.

After her money had been accepted heartily by the man, Setsuna realized her lack of attention and blinked down at her. "You didn't have to pay, Kono-chan. I should ha-"

She blushed when Konoka giggled and placed a finger to her lips and shook her head. "Let me pay today, okay?" She smiled up at her and stuck her bottom lip out just slightly.

Rolling her eyes skyward, Setsuna nodded consent. "You're lucky you caught me off guard..." She eyed the smaller girl with a faux stern air and suppressed a chuckle when she stuck her tongue out playfully at her.

"Here you are, ladies," the man stated, smiling kindly at them as he pushed two plates of steaming pancakes across the counter towards them. Konoka chirped a 'Thank you' as Setsuna plucked both plates from the surface, starting into the seating area, knowing Konoka would be close behind her.

"Do you mind if I ask if we may sit with them?" Setsuna nodded toward the two people she had been eying previously, her voice somewhat apologetic as she sensed it wouldn't have been Konoka's first choice.

_Secchan never wants to be social like this..._ Puzzled, Konoka nodded her silent consent, allowing Setsuna to lead the way as it was she who was interested in sitting there.

As they neared the two, Setsuna caught the eye of the young woman, now thoroughly absorbed in a pad of paper.

"Can I help you?" Her voice held the slightest hint of an accent, serving to enhance the air of mysterious beauty that seemed to pervade her. The young man looked up curiously, wondering whom she was talking to, and fixed a curious gaze on the approaching couple.

"Er, yes. Would it be alright if we were to sit with you, Senpai?" Her question was directed at the swordswoman, though her eyes flicked politely to her companion as well, acknowledging him.

The girl blinked in surprise, looking between the swordswoman and the chocolate-haired girl beside her. "I guess so, yeah." She motioned at the seats across the table, and with a gracious nod, Setsuna sat both plates down, pulling a chair out for Konoka to seat herself.

Once the two were arranged, before even bothering her pancakes, Setsuna fixed an interested gaze on the young woman who'd gone back to her pad, her pen moving furiously across its surface. She was silent for a moment, mulling her words over in her mind and surprising herself with her own willingness to be so direct.

"Excuse me, Senpai." She looked up from her pad once more, something akin to slight annoyance playing across her features. She didn't speak, and Setsuna took that as permission to continue. "It may seem odd of me to ask, but what sword style do you use?"

The girl put down her pen and looked intently at Setsuna for a moment. "It is odd, actually. First, what's your name, and why the interest?"

_A logical question._ Setsuna mentally berated herself for skipping such formalities, showing herself to be quite rude. "I'm sorry, Senpai." She stood, noticing Konoka from the corner of her eye prepare to introduce herself as well. "My name is Sakurazaki Setsuna. I am a first year student here, and member of a little-known sword school from Kyoto."

Konoka spoke up immediately after her, her soft voice coming from her shoulder. "My name is Konoe Konoka, and I'm also a first year student here." The older girl didn't bat an eye at either of their introductions, but at Konoka's name, the young man stopped eating and raised an eyebrow, though he remained quiet.

In return, the other raven-haired woman stood. "It's nice to meet you." She bowed, as low as either of them had, her braid slipping down over one of her shoulders. "My name is Lok Ching Fung, and both myself and this idiot at my side are third year students." She motioned at her brown-headed companion who chuckled slightly at the title as he stood.

"My name is Alexiel Shinteiv, but feel free to call me Alex." His bow was as deep and practiced as anyone's who had done so all their lives, despite his obviously non-Asian descent. His voice held no trace of an accent, even so far as to sound as if he was used to a more archaic form of Japanese somehow, likely his pronunciation, whether accident or intended. His hair nearly reached his shoulders and while not immaculate was not messy either. He too wore glasses, these similar to Negi Springfield's, but not quite as small. He seated himself once the three girls had, starting again on his pancakes with obvious, though controlled, hunger.

Lok seemed to think her answer to Setsuna's question over before stating, not as confident as she would have liked in her response. "I can't claim that I am student of a particular style, Sakurazaki-san. I'm...self-taught." She paused thoughtfully, then nodded. "Yes, that's the appropriate word."

With a surprised blink, Setsuna sat back in her chair, processing that. _For her to be self-taught and yet so powerful, she must either have a great deal of magic, or an immense skill with the creativity necessary for creating a sword style..._ She shook her head and smiled. "How long have you been self-training?"

The bespectacled swordswoman cast a wistful look at her plate still half full of pancakes, realizing the conversation was likely to continue. "Since I was around 7, maybe 8."

She shrugged. "Probably not even as long as you have been practicing," she looked more intently at her, obviously fishing for information, "what did you say the name of your sword school was?"

_Heh, she's shrewd, that's for sure._ Setsuna felt her respect for her fellow swordswoman grow as their conversation continued. "It's something I'm not supposed to divulge, Senpai." The Shinmeiryuu were secretive to the point that even history had nearly forgotten them, save those that they interacted with openly.

The other girl nodded, storing away the assumption that this Setsuna was of one of the few ancient sword schools remaining into her mind for later consideration. "I see." She took a slow bite off one of her remaining pancakes, chewing thoughtfully before continuing. "I assume you're going to be taking Kendo while you're here?"

Setsuna nodded and picked up Konoka's now empty plate to set it on the tray so its disposal later would be easier. "Yes. I was intending to take the Combat course as well, but there were such limitations..." Lok nodded in understanding and finished the last of her pancakes, setting her plate on the tray before Alex who had finished several minutes ago. "Are you taking the class, Senpai?"

Lok nodded coolly, setting back in her chair and crossing her arms over her chest. "Of course. Mimura-sensei all but forced me to continue." She chuckled softly to herself, recalling the teacher whom she was nearly a match for circle it himself on her class selection forms.

"Do you have the class as your second?" The Shinmeiryuu swordswoman frowned, trying to remember and failing, before resorting to the folded papers in her shirt pocket. She pulled it out and scanned it quickly, then nodded.

"Yes, I have it as my second class with Mimura-sensei. It says it starts at 1330." She looked back up at her senior, waiting for a reaction.

"We have class together then; good." She cocked a small grin at the younger girl. "If you don't mind, perhaps you'll let me give you a pop quiz on day one."

Setsuna blinked in surprise at the request. _She wants to fight me already?_ She allowed a small smile to cross her face. "I would be honored, Senpai." She was not merely being polite, but rather was truly honored at being asked by one of the apparently senior-most students and possessor of some of the most blatant Ki she had encountered to engage in a combatative test.

"You have three days then, Sakurazaki-san." She grinned in a manner that was more self-assured than cocky. "I look forward to it." The second sword-wielder smiled and opened her mouth to respond in kind, but stopped when she noticed Lok's expression and mannerisms change entirely.

She sat up quickly in her chair, her arms falling back to her sides and her countenance growing serious. "Good morning, Zephira-sensei." At the mention of the name, Alex looked up from Lok's pad that he'd been reading, his eyes roving to stop on some point behind Setsuna, and he blinked and sat up in his chair much like Lok had.

An avian cry, along with the odd reactions of her seniors, caused Setsuna to turn around curiously in her seat, almost making her regret she had. Seemingly from nowhere, a blur of blue and white whipped around from atop the café's roof, landing lightly on the ground beside Konoka. Ryo-ohki, who had been totally quiet on Setsuna's shoulder, immediately looked up, her ears swiveling around as her eyes locked on the other animal.

The creature was a sky blue in body, and what could only be its wings seemed to be nothing more than thick white clouds surrounding its body and extending as any bird's would. It folded its long azure tail over its body, the ends of it brushing against its elegant head. The bird-creature cocked its head at Setsuna, crying out again, though in a seemingly more friendly manner.

"Er...Zephira-sensei?" Setsuna flicked her confused gaze from Konoka who shrugged in equal confusion, and the other two students across the table.

A musical laugh from behind her drew Setsuna's and her girlfriend's attention, and she turned all the way around in her seat to find its origin. A violet haired woman was strolling easily up to their table, a small smile playing across her features. _I didn't sense her at all..._ The longer she stayed on this island, the more wary she became of they who inhabited it, despite her enjoyment. Within their first morning, she had found an equal in swordsmanship and a person, teacher apparently, who was able to approach her unnoticed.

"She's not a teacher, per se, but she might have orders to relay to you on occasion on my behalf." Regardless of the earlier laugh, her voice was serious for what would have normally been an amusing comment. "I am who your compatriot was referring to."

Somehow sensing, as did Lok and Alex, that it was the appropriate time to stand out of respect, both Konoka and Setsuna did so. "Good morning, sensei," the couple stated in unison. Konoka opened her mouth to introduce herself, but the strikingly blue and white clothed woman held up a hand to stop her.

"There's no need to introduce yourselves, Konoe-san, Sakurazaki-san." At their confused looks, the woman motioned for them to sit. After they had done so, she stepped closer, absently running her hand over the bird-dragon's head, her hands trailing over the two streamer-like feathers that fell back over its body. "I should, although I'm sure those two," she flicked her gaze to the still silent students behind Konoka and Setsuna, "have mentioned me already."

She nodded at the group as any teacher normally would to a student when introducing themselves, her hair flipping over her shifting along her back. "My name is Winona Zephira. Neither of you have me for classes, but I will be seeing you quite often regardless as I am in charge of the girl's dorms and," her voice quieted slightly, "the organizer of campus security."

As her teacher waited for a response from either of the two newer students, the Chinese girl's eyes fell on Sakurazaki Setsuna curiously. _It must be for her that Zephira-sensei came. She could contact me at any time, so it's not that. She must be more skilled than I'd thought if Zephira-sensei wishes her to join the security division. _

As at Mahora Academy, a team of powerful students and teachers were employed to patrol the grounds on set rounds, searching out and destroying demonic activity of any power level, sometimes needing them to request reinforcements if the situation were especially unfair. Demonic attacks were not common at many other institutions, but outposts of magic were an exception. Due to the heavy concentration and use of magic and similar skills, demons and sorcerous creatures were drawn to the power, seeking it as a source through which to empower themselves to greater levels. As such, it was necessary to have a defense system that was capable of repelling these continuous, though random, attacks.

In most cases, the incidents were taken care of with little difficulty, merely a quick extermination by one or more members of the security team. It was very rare for students to learn even of the team's existence, let alone one of their skirmishes.

Konoka frowned worriedly and looked over at her girlfriend. _I hope they don't ask Secchan to do anything dangerous..._ It wasn't until after their field trip with Negi Springfield that she had found out Setsuna had been the senior fighter of Mahora's security team, and she had worried continuously over her safety. She knew the swordswoman could take care of herself, but she was unable to completely forget the situation.

Setsuna's mouth formed an "o" of realization. Konoe Konoemon, Headmaster of Mahora Academy, had told her before they'd departed the mainland that she would likely be enlisted, although it was still her choice for her to accept.

Winona looked up at Lok and nodded her head towards wherever she had come from, and the younger girl returned the nod, standing up.

"I'll see you later, Alex." Disappointment quickly flashed across the young man's features, but he smiled and nodded, passing her notebook back over to her.

"Alright." He tapped the book, still smiling. "You'd better keep writing; it's really gettin' good."

She nodded and picked the book up, tucking it under an arm. "Have a good day." The phrase actually held a genuine quality, unlike when it was said by a store-clerk, or a businessman.

"Sakurazaki-san, would you please come with me? What I need shouldn't take long," Winona asked, her tone suggesting that it was less of a question and more of a statement. Setsuna looked at Konoka, one corner of her mouth twitching in silent indecision.

"I'll be okay, Secchan." Konoka smiled and looked at Alex across the table. "Is it alright if I stay with you, Senpai?" Blinking in some surprise, the boy in question smiled and nodded as if to say "of course." "Go on and go with Zephira-sensei. I'll see you at lunch."

With a smile at her girlfriend and a nod of thanks to the only male within the gathered company, Setsuna stood and pushed her chair back under the table. "Certainly, Zephira-sensei."

The violet-haired instructor gave the bird-like creature a final stroke upon its softly feathered head, something about the movement telling it that it was free to leave as it wished. _"Want me to return to the dorm, Wi?"_

Winona nodded as she stepped back to give her familiar room. _"Yes, please do, Altaria."_ With a happy cry, her expansive white wings snapped down, pushing her from the ground easily.

Setsuna marveled at the soft white wings of Winona's familiar, so different from, and yet so similar, to her own, though they were not of feather but rather cloud. As she began to disappear into the sky, blending with the clear blue atmosphere and the scattered white clouds, the swordswoman smiled at her teacher. "She's beautiful, Sensei."

A proud smile played across the taller woman's face at the compliment. Altaria was as much a part of her as she was of her familiar, and she was immensely fond of her. "Thank you, she would appreciate being told that." She allowed herself a chuckle. "She's a little vain at times, and would love to have something like that to feed her ego."

As she began to follow her senior and her teacher, Setsuna frowned slightly in surprise. _I wonder just how sentient she is..._ There were few magical creatures that lived among those of the Outer World, Albert Chamomile being the only one she had had much interaction with personally.

* * *

Konoka watched the three figures walk into the distance, keeping her soft eyes on them until they were basically out of sight. She turned back to her new-found companion and couldn't help but smile in amusement. His emerald eyes were focused in the same direction hers had been, though they were essentially unseeing; his hand absently traced random trails through his remaining syrup with his fork. As he finally noticed her stare, Alex blinked and fixed his gaze on her, a slight red color overcoming his face. "S-sorry about that, Konoe-san, I blanked out a bit."

He laughed to dispel his own embarrassment and leaned back, rubbing the back of his neck with a free hand. "I kinda have a tendency to do that."

Feeling sly, the chocolate-haired healer leaned onto the table and grinned. She wouldn't normally be quite so abrupt, but she felt comfortable in his presence already, and knew he wouldn't react badly. And aside from that, his reactions were amusing. "I bet you don't do it as much when a particular swordswoman isn't here."

His eyes grew wide and his face grew red at the proclamation. "E-excuse me?" He raised his hands in an almost defensive manner, his face growing redder as her grin grew more Cheshire. "You've got the wrong idea, I assure you, Konoe-san." He attempted a smile to show his sincerity, failing somewhat as it wavered nervously.

The weak denials gave Konoka cause to giggle again, making Alexiel yet more uncomfortable. "I've seen that exact same expression before, Senpai, and I know exactly what it means. And that constant little blush when she's around is kinda obvious too." She was normally a very emphatic person in general, but seeing the expression that often adorned Setsuna's features when Konoka caught her watching her was like a beacon to her near-sixth-sense.

Alexiel Shinteiv coughed into his hand and sat back, crossing his arms. "I-it's not like that, Konoe-san." _As much as that would be nice._ He fell silent, looking at the ceiling, trying his hardest to avoid the young woman's gaze.

She giggled again, taking his words as a confirmation of her suspicions. It was pathetically obvious, but she decided not to press it. Instead she crossed her arms as well, almost in a playful mocking manner, and sat back. "When you're ready to tell me about it, I'll be right here." She laughed once more when his blush renewed itself.

* * *

They were silent until well out of ear-shot when Lok adjusted her sword to a more comfortable position and fell back slightly to walk beside her fellow swordswoman rather than her instructor and commander. "Were you told before you got here that you'd be on the security team?"

Setsuna nodded, absently reaching one hand up to pat Ryo-ohki who had, upon Lok's nearing, awoken and stood in an unbalanced fashion. "I was the leader of the security team at Mahora Academy, actually."

Eyeing the sharp-toothed little animal with an amused expression, Lok nodded her approval. "That's good. You'll probably do fine here. It's probably easier." She cast a questioning glance at the shorter girl. "Mahora Academy is on the Japanese mainland, right?" Setsuna nodded affirmation, receiving the same in return. "Then it will be easier here. It's more difficult for demons and the like to reach us on Syran Island."

_That makes sense. Although that means the ones that do make it can either fly or swim, and those are usually more powerful..._ She didn't bother voice her concerns, having already arrived at a decision that rendered the question moot. Instead she remained contemplatively silent, looking across the campus and taking in what she could, loving more and more the peaceful atmosphere it provided.

She winced when Ryo-ohki dug her claws into her shoulder and launched herself forward, latching onto the back of Winona's blue tunic with her forepaws. _Uh-oh..._

The instructor didn't seem perturbed, and merely reached back and picked up the cabbit by her ears, setting her on her shoulder as she had been on Setsuna's.

"So, you've decided to pester Sakurazaki-san, have you?" Her voice held a note of amusement, surprising both Setsuna and Lok to some extent. "You usually don't leave Ryoko's side, yet you've struck out with a stranger?"

She turned back to flash a small grin at Setsuna, reassuring her that she didn't mean things as harshly as she said. "She must really be fond of you, Sakurazaki-san. She's rarely spent time with anyone other than Ryoko, Hurley-sensei, myself, or a couple of the other more social familiars and their Bonds."

Setsuna shrugged. "I'm as puzzled as you, Zephira-sensei." Lok chuckled at that and decided that she would get along with her new compatriot without trouble; they seemed enough alike. "Most animals have a tendency to avoid me for...various reasons."

The Chinese swordswoman cocked her head slightly in curiosity. _It's surely not just because of her swordsmanship..._ She frowned and, without doing so intentionally, probed the other girl with her Ki. Having little actual training, her attempted intrusion was blocked unconsciously by Setsuna, who for the longest time, had erected barriers around her mind. Very few she had met stood even a chance of penetrating, even less for Lok who had little idea of how to effectively attempt such a thing. She decided it best to ask the mysterious younger girl herself, or question Winona later.

The instructor was also somewhat confused by the statement, mainly because it only alluded to something that had had her curious since she had encountered the Sakurazaki girl. Even Altaria had attested that there was an odd aura about her, but was unable to place it. _It's almost as if she's a demon, but the influence clearly isn't that strong or I would have been notified when she made landfall, and again when she entered the school and the dorms..._ She bit her lower lip thoughtfully, looking off absently into the horizon as they rounded the corner of the boys' dorm. In the distance, the Academy Registry, a short though elegant building matching the Victorian style of the dorms stood.

_She doesn't seem quite like a half-demon either, but there's definitely demonic influence..._ The small mammal on her shoulder didn't seem to particularly react to the energy, and Winona had to admit it seemed likely that that very fact was what had the young swordswoman of Shinmeiryuu perplexed. _Perhaps it's because of that aura that Ryo-ohki takes to her though..._ Once more, she regretted that Ryo-ohki was, as of yet, incapable of communicating with anyone aside from her Bond, Ryoko, who had a bad habit of not paying attention to her. _Perhaps Mikuri can sense something I can't..._ She resolved to ask her fellow teacher at the next opportunity and effectively pushed the thought from her mind, instead deciding to enjoy the excellent breeze that made the grass beneath them ripple like the subtle waves of the ocean.

The distance between them and the administrative building seemed to pass by slowly in the contemplative silence undertaken by all three with the exception of the once more sleeping Cabbit. Lok and Setsuna waited as Winona pulled the door open, motioning them inside the smaller building. Lok before Setsuna, they entered, their eyes adjusting slowly to the suddenly darker environment. "This way, please," Winona stated as she moved past them, not bothering to orient herself to the light levels as she knew the area quite well.

Setsuna noticed the interior of the building matched the exterior rather well, paintings and statues of the Victorian era decorating the walls and tables in the hallway. It seemed to consist mainly of offices, most of which were locked. Winona hesitated at the door labeled "Head of Campus Defense," but shook her head and moved on. The newest of the three's eyes lingered on the door, and Setsuna realized instantly that it was Winona's office, at least the one pertaining to her position within the higher administration, though it was logical that she used it for her teaching position as well.

At the end of the hallway, the violet-haired woman stopped before a desk set off to the side. "I've come as the Headmistress requested," she explained in something of a hushed tone. It didn't seem fitting for the austere atmosphere to use much above a whisper.

The secretary cast a wary glance at the door, then nodded. Considering who else was in there with the Headmistress, she figured it wouldn't be a problem to allow them in.

"I think it would be okay if you went on in, Zephira-sensei."

She smiled a thank you at her and turned to motion for Lok and Setsuna to follow her as she pulled open one of the rather large, heavy looking, doors that apparently led to the Headmistress' office. As she stepped through the doors behind her senior, Setsuna briefly entertained the thought that all school leaders kept offices of generally the same type, requiring big doors, a massive desk, and tall windows, but dismissed the idea when she saw the vast number of tapestries that adorned the walls rather than the books she was used to.

Setsuna's gaze immediately refocused on her teacher when she gave a small startled gasp after getting nearly half-way through the cavernous room. She followed the somewhat surprised gaze of the taller woman to the set of chairs arranged before the large oak desk. Seated in the chair furthest from them white-capped man, his legs crossed before him, and a wide smile on his face. "Good morning, Winona."

Winona recovered quickly, her eyes immediately flicking to another random point in the room, and nodded.

"Good morning, Wallace. I was not expecting to find you so soon; I've got a few questions for you later."

He nodded. "That's fine, of course." Wallace motioned invitingly at the chairs, still smiling. "Come in, ladies. I'm afraid the Headmistress stepped out for a, ah," he chuckled a little at the circumstances, "step into the powder room."

As Winona settled herself into the chair beside the azure-haired man, she chuckled as well. It was a running joke among the staff that the Headmistress had terribly bad timing, particularly when she was scheduled to be somewhere. The more disapproving staff made half-serious jokes that it was to maintain her appearance, but the rest didn't especially mind. "I assume you have something to talk to her about too?"

He nodded as he smiled a greeting to both of the swordswomen as they sat, a notion returned by Lok, and hesitantly so by Setsuna. Turning back to his fellow instructor, he nodded, his face becoming serious once more.

"Yes, I certainly do. Several of the possible familiars this year are particularly," he paused, carefully choosing the right word, "easily agitated."

She nodded in understanding, biting her lower lip thoughtfully. "And all your usual tricks haven't worked yet?" A frown marred her face, much to Wallace's chagrin. "And no-one else can do anything with them?"

He shook his head with a resigned sigh. "I'm afraid not. The normal sedatives are only about half as effective as they should be, atop that." His gaze flicked to the younger members in their company and lowered his voice conspiratorially. "Two of my assistants have already been injured by the Ponyta alone."

Her eyes widened, immediately recognizing the animal he spoke of, having watched over their arrival at Syran. "She hasn't calmed down yet?"

He uncrossed his legs and shook his head, a somewhat remorseful expression crossing his face. "I don't like it, but after these kinds of incidents I'm required to talk to the Headmistress about what to do."

Winona nodded her understanding and pushed herself to her feet when the heavy doors opened once more, surprisingly silent on their old hinges, to admit a rather fair-skinned Japanese woman. Her ebony hair was cut at her shoulders, curling up very slightly at the ends to frame her face, making her seem yet younger than she was. She smiled cordially at the four of them, a real smile, not the ones she wore for school board meetings and official functions.

"Winona, Wallace, it's good to see you." She laughed lightly as she spun her chair around to seat herself, turning to rest her elbows on the desk with a smile. "You're both usually so busy earning your pay it's tough to find you doing nothing like this."

Once she had seated herself, the four of them sat back down as well, falling silent. Setsuna looked between the two teachers and the new woman, assuming her to be the Headmistress they had spoke of. She was tempted to lean over the arm of her chair to question the other member of the security team, but didn't wish to get reprimanded. Again. After a few moments of indecision and exchanged glances, the booted man nodded and cleared his throat."

"Headmistress, I'm afraid I have regrettable news concerning a few of this year's newest addition to the pool of available familiars." His voice truly contained a note of sadness, and Setsuna felt her respect for the man rising.

The woman behind the desk furrowed her brow, picking up a stray pencil and spinning it between her fingers, likely as a force of habit. "How so?"

He brushed a lock of azure hair from before his eyes of the same color and sat forward in his chair, clasping his hands before him. "They're more wild than most that we've dealt with. The slightest thing spooks them, and they're terribly difficult to calm down once they've panicked. The sedatives we're allowed to use by school policy are strong enough to relax them after a bit, but they're not nearly effective enough for us to consider releasing them among the students when they're allowed to choose one."

Saehara Noriko sighed and sat the pencil back on the desktop, rubbing her mocha-brown eyes with her hands. "How many of them are like that?"

Wallace paused, counting mentally to be sure he remembered them all. "There are four that are severe to the point of having injured two of my assistants," he winced when her eyes snapped open in surprise at the mention of injuries, "and two more that aren't as violent, but very difficult to control. Collateral damage more than anything."

"Your assistants are not seriously injured, yes?"

He nodded quickly. "No, Headmistress. Just a little pain here and there, perhaps a little bruising." He trailed off, not wanting to go into details as they tended to make a situation seem worse.

She sighed and rubbed her hands across her eyes tiredly. "And why wasn't this noticed before the last several days before classes start?" Her voice was suddenly heavier, weighted with worry and annoyance.

The azure-haired man shook his head, shrugging slightly. "They were late-comers to begin with, and have only recently began to act as outwardly energetic as this. We didn't realize there was a problem until now."

Silence fell and Wallace sank back slightly into his chair as he waited for a decision on her part. His eyes were clouded with worry at the worst of the possible endings for the situation; the ending in which the dangerous familiars-to-be were permanently removed from the campus, or rid from the world entirely. _They don't deserve that; they're not bad creatures, merely scared, or worried..._ He was fairly certain that Saehara Noriko wouldn't put them to death, or even insurrection, but it was still a possibility, and he allowed it to pull at him more than logic would dictate.

"Keep them in a detention area until we can make a decision about how safe they are." Her voice was quiet and held a quality that seemed to age her. She had been especially close to her own familiar, and after its death she found the subject difficult to deal with, even more so discussing the confinement of the animals. "If you have any particularly promising potential Bonds, let them see these. Maybe they'll be able to calm one or two of them."

Setsuna surprised herself by sighing in relief, though it wasn't out of place in the room in which the other two occupants did the same. She had never been particularly fond of animals, likely because the feeling was mutual, and she could only assume she had been caught up in the moment. She frowned in a bemused manner. _I seem to do that a lot..._ Her gaze strayed to her shoulder where Ryo-ohki still slept. _Or the fur ball's getting to me._

"Thank you, Headmistress." As expected, Wallace's voice was laden with relief, already planning the appropriate amount of food, bedding, water, and space to allot to each of the hopeful familiars. The Ponyta in particular would require a generous amount of space, likely an acre or so merely so it wouldn't feel unduly confined. "I'll try to get them quarantined by this evening."

He fell silent, and the Japanese woman offered no further response. After several moments' silence, the violet-haired American cleared her throat, smiling slightly when her senior administrator looked at her, hoping for better news than what her coworker had delivered. "Yes, Winona?"

"As you've requested, I've brought Sakurazaki-san," she motioned at Setsuna, and with a blink, the swordswoman stood, nodding a greeting at the woman behind the desk.

"I've not really discussed things with her though. Since it's Administration's decision before mine, I though I'd leave it to you to pound out the details."

Chuckling, Noriko winked at the slightly older woman. "Is that so? And here I thought it was just because you were lazy..." Winona rolled her eyes playfully as the Headmistress' manner switched to a more suitably official one and she trained her gaze on Setsuna.

The swordswoman gulped down a surge of nervousness under the look, sensing finally, after much confusion, why the Mage was the Headmistress of the school and not someone older, wiser, and likely more skilled. "Sakurazaki Setsuna-san, you know why I asked Zephira-sensei to bring you for a meeting with me, yes?"

_Assuming I'm right..._"Yes." Her nod was confident, though not strong enough to dislodge the long-eared animal riding on her shoulder.

"Ah, that's good. Less explaining for me." Lok chuckled quietly at this, though Setsuna ignored her entirely, concentrating on her intention for the resolution of the conversation. "Now, Konoemon-san told me that you were the head of the combat unit at Mahora, and that we'd probably want to hire you on here as well." She nodded at Lok, "Our unit is a lot bigger than Mahora's, and we already have a sword-wielder, but I'm sure that won't be a problem."

Both girls nodded in affirmation, and Noriko returned the motion. "We'll pay you better than Mahora did. Of course, that means the work is a little more intensive." She smiled coyly. "But you can use the money, right? Konoemon-san forwarded a letter to me from a Tatsumiya Mana-san." She slid the apparent letter in question across her desktop towards the edge. "Something about a rather substantial debt..."

Setsuna's eyes went wide and, sweating profusely, she picked up the letter, noting that it was indeed addressed to her in the miko's distinctive writing style. "Er...thanks." It was becoming slightly more difficult to ignore the quiet laughter of her senior and the sudden, quickly stopped, chuckle from the woman to Wallace's left.

The Headmistress folded her hands before her, her smile fading away once more to be replaced by a business-like expression. "If you'll accept the position as Academy Guardian, despite this being your first year, we offer it and its benefits to you, Sakurazaki-san. If you do so, obviously, you'll start out at the bottom of the ranks. Promotions will be awarded as Zephira-sensei sees fit."

With a gulp, Setsuna lowered her hand holding the letter and nodded. "I'm afraid I'll have to decline the offer, Headmistress." As she expected, the woman looked surprised. _Great, I've got to explain..._

"I really would appreciate the income, of course, but I'm afraid I have...stronger interests." The rest of the room's occupants displayed various expressions of interest, and with a slight blush, she continued. "It may sound contradictory, but I can't take the position of Guardian because I...have something I need to protect."

Behind her, Wallace spoke up, his voice a little confused. "You're quite correct, Sakurazaki-san; that is rather contradictory." The Headmistress and members of the school's combat unit nodded their agreement.

Turning a darker shade of red, Setsuna fidgeted slightly, awakening Ryo-ohki on her shoulder. "If I'm out on patrols, or on a mission, I'll be unable to be with, and be protecting, what I truly want to keep safe." Lok's raised eyebrow was the final key in turning her face to its often seen crimson. Much to her chagrin, Ryo-ohki licked her ear lightly, her sand-paper like tongue sending shivers down the swordswoman's spine.

She looked between the other three people, her gaze landing at last on the man to Winona's right. His smile was disarmingly genuine. "I understand your meaning, Sakurazaki-san. I'm sorry to have pried."

Winona, a little slower on the uptake, but understanding nonetheless, nodded and smiled as well. "I see." The headmistress remained silent and Lok merely sat back, a suddenly bored expression on her face.

Noriko cleared her throat, once more drawing attention to her, and in turn to Setsuna. "So your final decision is to decline the position?" Setsuna nodded, trying to ignore Ryo-ohki's insistent pawing at her ponytail as best she could. The fair-skinned administrator smiled in understanding and nodded.

"I understand, Sakurazaki-san." Her eyes trailed to the letter in Setsuna's hand a mischievous smile crossed her face. "I hope Tatsumiya-san does."

Feeling herself relax from relief, Setsuna grinned uncertainly and nodded. "Yeah, she probably didn't expect me to decline..." Alternately cursing her once-partner and digging through what she knew of the school for other jobs, Setsuna took the ensuing silence as her cue to be seated. Automatically smoothing her skirt out, Setsuna sat back down in her chair, glad to no longer be under scrutiny, particularly any that involved Kono-chan, even as remotely as that had.

Tugging absently on the sleeve of her pressed white shirt, Noriko turned back to Winona. "Is there anything else of import that's happened since the last debriefing?"

"No ma'am, the grounds have remained thankfully quiet. Also, all returning Guardians have so far decided to keep their positions." With a satisfied nod, Noriko's eyes drifted to the clock suspended above the entrance to her office.

"If that's all the news from both of you, I'm afraid I have yet another meeting to prepare for." From her tone of voice it was obvious that the meeting was not one she thought she'd enjoy. They were generally the complete opposite of the atmosphere in which they currently sat, being a room filled with investors, lawyers, and government officials. Least of her skills was the one that kept her awake and focused while various people around the room made reports on new policies, financing, parental reports, and seemingly thousands of other inconsequential matters.

Wallace and Winona looked at each other, and then back at their boss, nodding. "That's all I have that needs to be discussed with you, Headmistress," the azure-haired man stated as he stood easily from the chair, flexing his shoulders to work out the kinks. "Winona, I do need to speak to you about the arrangements for the familiars, however."

She nodded and stood as well, one hand brushing several strands of stray hair from before her eyes. "That's fine. I need to talk to you about some things as well." With a respectful nod at the Headmistress, both of the teachers rounded their respective chairs and started towards the door. "Shall we meet in my office, Mikuri? It's just here down the hall."

"That sounds fine, Nagi," he agreed pleasantly, holding the heavy door open for her easily, then smiling at the remaining two students and single administrator. "Good day, ladies."

"Lok-san, Sakurazaki-san, before you go, are there any questions?" She didn't bother to linger on the Chinese girl for too long; she'd been a student for three years already, and she found it doubtful she'd suddenly have a new curiosity on school policy.

Both answered a polite "No ma'am," as they stood, each gathering their swords immediately. Setsuna paused, though Lok took no notice and continued for the door. "Wait, there is one thing, Headmistress."

"What is that, Sakurazaki-san?" Her tone was genuinely curious, and Setsuna could only smile at the concept that the school was actually trying to actively accommodate its students, rather than forcing them to conform to a multitude of pointless rules.

A blush colored her face slightly and she averted her gaze to the desktop. "Is there anyway I can have my room changed?"

The Headmistress' laugh was a sure sign of disappointment, and Setsuna knew before Noriko said "I'm afraid not," that the answer was indeed 'no.' With a defeated smile, the swordswoman nodded a farewell and stepped back into the hallway, carefully closing the tall door behind her.

* * *

"Over there is where you can find most of the things you'd need to take care of a familiar, if you choose to get one," Alexiel Shinteiv directed, nodding at a rather squat building across the street.

Konoka nodded, mentally jotting a note about the place, placing a little mark next to it to denote importance. After seeing Ryo-ohki, she had spontaneously developed an interest in getting one, though it was too late to sign up for the proper course. "And what's that over there?"

Alex followed her finger and motioned for her to follow him to the indicated area. "This is the main clothing outlet, as you can probably tell as we get closer." He tugged on his own jacket, rather proudly, and smiled. "It may surprise you that most of the clothes here are really very high quality, and from some of the better known manufacturers."

He winced immediately upon reaching the outskirts of the building as the new student's eyes lit up and a broad smile crossed her face.

"This is great!" She ran up to a rack of shirts displayed a few feet outside the actual store, immediately moving things around, peering at what caught her eye in a critical manner.

"How do I get myself into these things..." Alex questioned himself as he followed her, albeit slowly, deeper into the store. She stopped suddenly at an aisle of loose, nearly silken shirts. _And how is it that girls can shop at almost any time, for any duration?_ He himself was a rather avid consumer of manga, the occasional anime, and accompanying video games, but even that was something he could only browse for so long.

A wolfish grin crossed the healer's face, and with as innocent a smile as she could, she pulled one of the silky shirts, a white one that reflected the overhead lights as if it were polished silver, and held it up for her older companion to see. "Wouldn't this look great on Lok-senpai, Shinteiv-senpai?" She fell into a fit of giggling as his cheeks took on the color of a ripe apple as he struggled to find an answer that was a definite 'yes,' but not so direct as to be interpreted the correct, though undesired, way.

"O-of course it would, Konoka-san, but I would never presume to choose her clothes for her..." He stood alternately cursing the chocolate-haired girl mentally, and trying not to think of the retribution he'd receive upon saying such a thing to the swordswoman. "I think it's just as suitable for Sakurazaki-san, don't you?" he returned.

To his disappointment, she genuinely looked the shirt over again, turning it around to inspect it from a different angle. "Hmm...not this color, but yeah, I think it'd look nice on her." She replaced it on its hanger and scanned the shelves again. "Not more blue...maybe this red..." She tugged a red shirt matching the white one she'd just been holding and glanced at the price tag, nodding appreciatively. "Yup, this'll work."

She glanced down at the digital readout on the screen of her cell phone. _Judging from when Secchan called, if she gets here as fast as she can, I should have plenty of time to pay for this..._ She looked suspiciously out into the street, relieved when she didn't spot her love, then took off past Alex deeper into the store.

Shaking his head with a small chuckle, the young man followed her more slowly, eyeing the various departments. Konoka popped into nearly every aisle, sometimes reappearing just as quickly, other times lingering for extended periods of time. Alex stuck by her until she reached the aisles populated by undergarments, at which time the brown-haired young man decided it would be highly improper to continue with her and instead high-tailed it to the men's department.

Nearly half an hour later, Konoka finally stuck her head into the aisle he was in, finding him examining the cloaks provided by the school. "Oooh, these are cool..."

Alex's head snapped up at hearing her voice, and he nodded. "I think so, anyway. Most people prefer a more modern coat these days, but I'm rather fond of the symbolism represented by these cloaks."

Konoka reached out to feel the material on the closest cloak, slightly surprised at how soft yet durable it was. "What symbolism is that, Senpai?"

He smiled and pulled one of them, a long black one with silver clasps in the shape of wings, from the hanger, swinging it around his shoulders. It settled around him, and Konoka had to admit it suited him. "The mystique of the Mages, an era ruled by chivalry and honor, and the height of magical discovery." He fastened the clasp and flipped the hood up, the cowl casting a total shadow over his face. Allowing his hands to slip within the folds of the cloak, it covered him entirely.

"You look really good in a cloak, Senpai!" Immediately, the healer began to picture Setsuna as she would appear in such attire, finding it to be a pleasant image.

Smiling to himself, Alex unclasped the material and allowed it to slide from his shoulders, hanging it over his arm. He flipped through the remaining cloaks, looking for one identical to the one he had, but a size smaller. The brown-haired boy pulled one from the group with a satisfied nod and laid it atop the one he already had. "Are you finished browsing, Konoka-san?"

She looked at the set of cloaks in his arms pointedly and raised an eyebrow, snickering, but said nothing, although she wanted very much to increase his new blush. "Yeah, I've got everything for now." She grinned. "There're some really good deals here!"

Alex nodded and started towards the end of the aisle. "Yes, they have excellent deals for students here, of course." He chuckled to himself as Konoka walked a bit quicker to catch up with him as they neared the check-out counter. "Except the cloaks, as is my luck." His companion giggled her affirmation to the logic of the statement and began reviewing the clothes she had picked out for Setsuna, hoping she'd try them on for her later that day.


End file.
